


The Dying of the Light

by Notsalony



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Fed up!Stiles, M/M, Magic, Magic!Stiles, Supernatural - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2017-04-15
Packaged: 2018-04-12 16:12:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4486179
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Notsalony/pseuds/Notsalony
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles has had enough.  Enough of supernatural creatures and enough of unobservant werewolves that should honestly know better.  And most of all he’s had enough of Scott McCall’s bullshit.  It’s time to strike out on his own in a new town and find some peace.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Clarity

**Author's Note:**

> “well i was thinking in more or less Stiles loves Scott , but when he discovers Derek and Boyd or Isaac Fucking Scott , he gets furious , ends all with the pack ,and leaves for another State , where he inherits a Massive Library full of books about Magic ,and a ring that protects him from any threat . He becomes the next Supreme Arch mage ,and ends up fighting against evil supernatural creatures that come out of a Portal from a hellish dimension , and human armies cant not stop them,he defeats them and closes the Portal . . And the pack watch it all from tv ,and end up joining him, explaining about heat . And Scott taking him in his arms , kissing him .”  
> —  astrospace

Stiles had thought he’d finally had his shot. He’d realized a little while ago in the last year or so that he was in love with his best friend. But his best friend was very much into girls, and clueless to Stiles’ plight. But then Scott started checking guys out, his eyes lingering longer then was necessary and made Stiles think that he might actually have a shot. After Alison’s death he’d wondered if Scott was ever going to go out with anyone ever again.

However when he’d come into the pack den to see if Scott was there yet, he’d seen something that had made him drop his coffee on the ground. Scott, bare ass naked, his face busy swallowing Boyd’s cock while Derek plowed into him from behind, Isaac under him stroking the large Latino cock of Scott’s. Stiles didn’t stick around for explanations or the offer to join in, nope, he went home and packed. His dad asked what was up when he started carrying suitcases out of his room to the jeep.

“I’m going to drive till I’m out of gas, where ever I end up, that’s where I’m living. I’ll send the transfer papers for school.” In between trips with the suitcases the Sheriff got the full story out of his son and could relate. He didn’t like it, but if it kept his son out of the line of fire with the supernatural, he hugged his son goodbye and watched him drive off. Granted an hour later one of the wolves knocked on the Sheriff’s door to find a shot gun pointed at their head and a stern warning not to come back, Stiles was gone, and they weren’t welcome in that house any more.

Stiles drove all day and most of the night. The modifications they’d made to the jeep to ensure that he’d have enough gas to get away from anyone chasing them came in handy. He wasn’t even sure where he’d gone when the jeep finally sputtered to jerking halt just inside the city limits of a town he’d never heard of. He looked at the sign and guessed a town called Stonelower couldn’t be all that bad. He locked his baby up and went looking for a coffee shop to get information and make a plan.

It didn’t take him long to be sitting in a booth in the only coffee place in the whole town looking at his jeep parked down the street. He was sipping on his coffee waiting for the handyman to get back with a can of gas so he could move it properly. He’s already heard about an apartment for rent and would have his school records by the end of the week.

He finished his coffee, thanked the handy man and went to gas up his baby. He followed the directions the waitress had given him and he found a low rent housing complex. Shrugging to himself, Stiles went in and went to the desk. The guy behind the counter didn’t bother looking up when Stiles walked in, but he sniffed the air as Stiles approached and looked up confused.

Great... More werewolves.

“Listen I’m not in that pack any more. I just want to rent a room, and move on with my life. I’m human. You leave me alone, I leave you alone, and no one has to know anything about anyone.” Stiles looked hard at the guy.

“If you left your pack, what’s to stop me from killing you for invading my territory?”

“Other then the fact I have the Argents on speed dial, and I have a rowan wood bat?” Stiles tilted his head.

“I like you. AC’s not the best, but being human you might not need it.” He shrugged. “Name’s Leo.”

“Stiles.” Stiles took the pen and signed the rent agreement before taking the next step in his life.

It didn’t take nearly as long as he’d thought to get a basic life set up in Stonelower. Before too long he’d found a part time job at the local library after school and found himself working to pay what little bills he had. True he was a stranger in a new town, and for a while he was all anyone was talking about. But after a while and a few failed attempts to pry his secrets from him they left him alone. Eventually he graduated and started at the local collage. Nothing fancy but something he could use as a stepping stone for a four year collage. He texted his dad often, and even face charted with him on the weekends.

Stiles was just getting off work, near the end of his first year in collage when there was a package waiting with Leo at the front desk for him. He frowned at it.

“Who do you know in Poland?” Leo asked casually, not looking up from his book as he pointed to the package.

“My grandparents...” Stiles frowned, it was too early for their care package.

“Shit.” Leo sat up and bit his lip.

“What?”

“I can smell death coming off of what ever is in the box. It was held by someone who died before it was packaged up.” Leo looked nervously at Stiles.

“oh.” Stiles felt like suddenly he’d been asked to swim through the sky and had forgotten his swim trunks some where.... His grandparents were dead. He... He wasn’t sure how he felt about that just now. He thanked Leo and quietly picked up before walking up to his apartment. He opened the door blindly and numb to the world as he sat down on his ratty old couch and opened the package. The first was a bunch of legal documents, half of which were in Polish, he’d have to see a lawyer tomorrow. Finally he found a letter from the family lawyer his Grandparents had called Grant.

_Dear Stiles,_

_I know it is going to seem like an impossible thing, but your grandmother passed away this morning. She left strict instructions that I was to make sure that this object, her will, and her letter were given to you with in the first 18 hours after her death. You’ll understand more when you open the letter from her. I’m bound by laws a lot older then those of man to say no more till you have read from her letter. I’m expecting to hear from you soon. Good luck._

_Yours faithfully,_

Stiles frowned at the letter. Something about it made him think suddenly of Deaton and the Druids. Stiles hadn’t thought about any of that in years. Other then Leo he had no connections with the local pack and he had no contact with anyone back in Beaconhills other then his dad. He’d sent a card to his dad for Melissa and Lydia every year. He missed them if he let himself. But he still had no desire to ever see the others again. He felt the bitter feeling rise up along with a sense of loss and pain before he quashed that again. He glanced at Grant’s letter and wondered how he was supposed to contact him. He put that letter back in the box and looked at the carved ancient looking box. He opened it and inside the black velvet lined box was a silver key that he’d remembered his grandpa wearing for a little while before he died and then his grandma wore it around her neck every day of her life. He guessed she’d been wearing it when she died. He touched the key and felt a funny little flip in his stomach.

Best get this over... Time limits and everything... Stiles frowned, wondering why it was so time sensitive. He opened the other letter and started reading.

_My dearest one,_

_I am so sadden to think that you have to read these words. But if you are reading this then it is because I have died and most likely the package has just arrived. I’m sorry to have given you this burden while you were so young, I was hoping to get time to train you and teach you how to use this gift. But that’s a waste of time thinking of what might have been._

_Take the box and the key as well as the letters out of your apartment, close and lock your apartment door, then unlock it with the key from the box. You’ll understand more when it’s done._

The letter just left off there, blank for the rest of the page. Stiles frowned, but did as she said, walking out and locking his apartment before taking the silver key out of the box and looked at it. There was no way it’d fit in his lock. It was simply too wide, but these were his Grandma’s last wishes so he had to at least try. He pushed and was shocked when it slid in easy. Frowning at it he turned the key and heard a series of tumblers and locks moving as well as gears and other mechanical noises. He looked up and down the empty hall wondering if someone else was playing something with the noise up or if someone’s car was having problems. When the gears were finished turning the door popped open only slightly. Stiles frowned at the open door, nothing should have been able to surprise him any more. He’d seen a werewolf orgy, he should be unflappable... But as he walked into what had been his apartment, he was shocked to find that what had been his apartment was now a rounded room with floor to ceiling bookshelves full of thick leather bound books.

Piled in the middle of the room were his possessions, and dead center of the room was a book stand with the largest book Stiles had ever seen. He walked through the neat little piles of his meager possessions and went to touch the book.

“Might not want to do that just yet...” Stiles jumped at the voice and slammed his hand down on the book, before he could even fully register that Grant was standing in one of the doorways that left off of the circular room, Stiles found himself laying flat on his back on the ceiling. “As I was saying... In the event of her death, your grandmother set up several traps in every room of the citadel. Traps that can not be disarmed until the heir is granted his birth right. And since we haven’t done that yet...” Grant gestured up, his chestnut brown hair wavy and light as he stood there in his business suit.

“Okay, I’m going to assume this is magic. I’ve seen magic work before. This kind of feels like that. But... You’re a lawyer, what are you doing here?” Stiles looked up at Grant expecting some sort of logical answer.

“Yes, I’m able to be a lawyer because of the countless law books in our achieves from every known realm. I’m also bespelled to have credentials in every realm as well.” Grant put his hand over the book. “As the custodial guardian conjured by the house of the Wolf and it’s many branches that I serve, I bestow upon this boy the rights and powers that come with the ownership and care of Arcanus and it’s responsibility do I grant to him as well. By the ancient ones who walked the seven realms and the elders who first built the great houses, I submit this heir to be inspected.” Grant stepped back and Stiles had the distinct feeling he was being looked at. It felt like being touched by hands that weren’t there, watched by eyes that didn’t exist... And slowly he floated down to the floor again.

“What just happened?”

“Arcanus has accepted you. Though I suggest you don’t get on her bad side. She’s ancient and knows more ways to harm a person then modern man has words for.” Grant smiled as one of the open books on a near by table shut with a sharp clap. “You know I mean well.” He smiled before looking at Stiles. “Your ancestors built this citadel, and when they were alive they filled it with books of power and used those books to pour sentient life into the very stones of this place. She’s the one who told them that the great force that was wiping out the other great magical houses would one day destroy her and them if they left her anchored to one spot. So they created a massive spell and bound the city outside of time and space, in a kind of nexus that can only be reached by the heir using that key. Once you’re inside here, you are invincible, and beyond the touch of death.” Grant smiled. “So... Yeah... This place is kind of big, I come as part of it. Bound to it and to it’s heir.”

“House of the wolf? Like werewolves?” Stiles asked as he sat up.

“Not per say. There were fourteen great houses of magic born out of various traditions and locations that all had their own seat of power. Originally the house of the wolf was located in Ireland. But they migrated generations ago to Poland to hide from their enemies. Anyways, why would you ask about werewolves?” Grant frowned.

“Scott, Derek, Boyd, Isaac, Erica, Aiden, Ethan, Liam,... Yeah I’ve know some werewolves. I was kind of running away from them and this whole supernatural world when I came here.” Stiles sighed.

“Ah. Yes. Well no. Not to my knowledge has the house had any direct dealings in the affairs of werewolves till now. If you would like...”

“No.” Stiles sat up.

“As you wish.” Grant patted him on the back. “I believe some of the other guests in the citadel would like to meet you now. If you’re willing?”

“Sure....”

 


	2. Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles stands before one of the world’s greatest collections of magic and begins to truly understand his place in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love it when I’m nervous about a story and people continue to send me requests for more of it.

“The castle and the grounds are quite expansive. And over the length of time it’s come to exist, there have been times of great peril for magic and the magical.” Grant spoke as they wandered through halls of mosaic tiles forming records of the ancient past. Scenes that depicted various points in magical history. None of which Stiles really knew as they walked past. Glancing at one he realized it was the formation of the werewolves and the damnation of Lycane. “We, the keeper of the house and the house proper, have been around quite a long time.” Grant continued, a lantern in his hand now.  
  
“Did we play a part here?” Stiles frowned, pointing to the forming of werewolves.  
  
“Unfortunately Lycane was a branch relative. That’s why he knew about the druids. His curse could have been so much worse if he’d been of one of the other houses. But the house of the wolf knows many enemies, some are even blood kin.” Grant turned back to walking down the hall, Stiles followed.  
  
“You were saying we’ve been through times of great peril?” Stiles prompted.  
  
“Yes. There always comes a time when magic needs to ask a favor of other magic. So to it is of the magical.” Grant sighed. “Over the years we’ve gathered quite a great many guests in the grounds who are now bound to the house, unable to leave it for any reason.” He walked to a painting of a cliff engulfed in waves, a lone tower looking like it rose from the sea to hold back the tide in the distance. Grant touched it and it swung open, revealing a spiral staircase going down. The lantern he held casting just enough light for Stiles to see his way down the stairs with Grant guiding him. “One of the oldest guests is Ithiri.” They stopped just outside a large door covered in a runic language Stiles had never seen before. “Do not take it personally.” Grant turned to Stiles then.  
  
“What?”  
  
“He’s like this with all of them.” Grant sighed and opened the door revealing a grotto covered in treasure and shells but swimming in the water was what looked like a giant fish to begin with. But when it turned and started swimming towards them Stiles saw a human head at the front of it. As the head came above water he almost stopped breathing when Scott’s face greeted him.  
  
“Scott... How.... What... I...” Stiles stammered.  
  
“Didn’t warn another one did you Grant.” Scott’s voice came out cold and a little cocky, nothing like the real Scott that Stiles knew. “I’m a mercreature.” He looked at Stiles, looked at him through Scott’s face. “We’re psychic mimics. We can’t be seen in our true form, so your mind fills in the gaps with the person you find the most attractive. I apparently look like this Scott to you. Grant is kind enough never to say who I look like to him.” He paused. “I am Ithiri Nordatta Eshto Vatta Cor.” Ithiri bowed in the water. “Last of house Lakecove, and the last living merman on the face of this earth. Look upon my radiant slender and try not to masturbate about it later.” He gave another smirk that looked like it would be at home on Jackson’s face more then Scott’s.  
  
“How do I stop you from looking like him?” Stiles asked.  
  
“Stop loving him.” Ithiri shrugged. “Till then, get used to it. I assume you’ll stop as we get to know each other. My wearing his face will probably break your attachment to him, and then the next person you find attractive will be sitting here looking at you instead.” He shrugged. “It’s nice to see someone who might have the strength to withstand what is coming. Even if you are a pathetic hedge.”  
  
“A what?” Stiles glared at him.  
  
“Hedge.” Ithiri said and then realized Stiles didn’t understand. “Gods of the nine seas, what do they teach you people now?” He sighed. “There are the trained witches who are taught by one or more masters and master their craft and go on to take students, and there are hedge witches, also known as the wild witch. They don’t have masters. They don’t have teachers. They have sparks of power and they go about training themselves through trial and error. And mostly killing themselves by fucking around with things they should know better then to touch.” He gave Stiles a dirty look. “I can smell the fox spirit and death magic on you.” Stiles blushed. “You made yourself a sacrifice and died and came back, which makes death magic a part of you for all time, but not only did you do that but you didn’t close the door behind you, leaving yourself vulnerable and open to attack. Then you had the stupidity to let yourself become possessed by a trickster spirit?” He shook his head. “Honestly. I’m shocked you’re not dead yet.” He ducked under the water, his iridescent tail silver and orange as he swam around.  
  
“Always like that you say?” Stiles glared at the water, choosing to be angry rather then feeling the pit of self loathing for having his mistakes laid bare.  
  
“Always.” Grant sighed.  
  
“Goody.” Stiles sighed.  
  
“Anyways.” Ithiri said as he came back up. “If you’d been trained you’d have done the rite the way it should have been done, had no threat to yourself, and came back with the door firmly shut. As it is you now have your natural spark of magic that is also mixed and tainted with the magic of death and the magic of the fox. You’re going to have a lot more to master then normal.” He gave Grant a sharp look. “As mercreatures use similar if more cold magic to the Fox, I can teach you how to mater that. But the death magic you’ll have to look else where. My people have... I’m sorry had, a very dim view of the use of it.”  
  
“Okay...” Stiles frowned.  
  
“Grant make sure he takes that book with him.” He pointed a webbed hand at a smooth cave wall and part of the wall carved and etched itself till it was a leather bound book covered with intricate fish on it. “It’s a basic primer for illusionary work. It’ll help you hide better. We’ll set something up later this week for your first lesson.” With that Ithiri slipped back into the water and vanished.  
  
“There’s a large underground water way down there for him to live in. He only really comes to this grotto for talking to others of the house.” Grant coughed, picking up the book and handing it to Stiles, who could feel whispers coming off the book like chilly little winds and gusts of wind. “Knowing you have death magic to contend with... I think our next stop should be out in the back garden.” Grant nodded to himself, walking to the opposite wall and tapping on it till the wall opened up revealing a stained glassed door with a very delicate looking interwoven forms of glass and wire to create a fantasy garden, and when he opened the door they were standing outside in that garden.  
  
“Uh, the lay out of this castle doesn’t make sense to me...” Stiles frowned.  
  
“I’m glad you caught that this early. It’s not so much a static lay out as the grounds are here and they move as you need them to. I’ll be your teacher for navigating the gateways of the house so that you can find what you’re looking for. Once you have control over that, you should be good on that front.” He smiled as they walked out amongst hedges and neatly kept plants of all kinds, some of which Stiles was sure weren’t mundane in the slightest, as little bits of light were falling up from the ground into the opening of an electric blue lily that was glowing more as more and more light went up into it. “But we’re here to meet Sean.” Grant walked them around a corner and they were in a part of the garden that appeared to be dead, but had strange flowers and fruits growing in the death and decay. “Do not ever eat anything from this part of the garden... It is toxic to both your body and your soul. But the herbs are invaluable to our magics. And as Sean is our resident expert on death magics... He lives out here.”  
  
“You flatter me.” A voice came from behind a hedge of black and red leaves on brittle looking twigs. Stiles walked around and was presented with a man who would have probably looked like a goth in the normal world. His hair black and pulled back in a ponytail, though inky black, had strands of silver and fresh blood wove in. He was wearing a black apron, and when when he turned Stiles realized nothing else but the apron. He turned back and looked at Stiles with a wry smile, his eyes completely black except for silver irises and a tribal like tattoo around his eyes that made it look like he was bleeding from his eyes. “The nudity helps me connect with the death here.” He smiled, stood up and dropped the apron revealing all of his naked form. “And I need to connection.” He waved his hand and it was as if he was suddenly growing tattoos. All over his body covered in runes and languages Stiles didn’t know but some he knew on sight were all over every square inch of Sean’s body. “I am a Death Elemental. We come from a realm where there’s nothing but ash and bone as far as the eye can see. I became trapped here, well in your realm, and the Banshees helped me find your ancestors.”  
  
“The Banshees helped you?”  
  
“We’re cousins. Our races. They can read coming death... We can smell it. We’re drawn to it to feed upon it.” He reached out and picked up a leathery lump of fruit and the runes on his hands flared to life, and as the magic traveled down the tattoos and runes to his heart, the lump of fruit withered more and more till it was nothing but ash in his hand. “There are no natural doors back from this real to my home, so I was trapped. Your ancestor say the potential in me and gave me a home here. Partly because a death elemental out in the wild... We can inspire more and more death. And humans... They sometimes pick up on the need of death so much so that they come together in mass groups to end their own lives together. This... Is usually because one of us is walking around with out realizing we’re doing anything wrong.” He dropped the ash to the ground and deftly reached out and grasped Stiles’ hand.  
  
“Uh...” The runes turned a different color but it was Stiles’ hand that worried Stiles more. His fingers appeared blackened, fading into his normal skin tone by the second or third joint. And all over his hands were waves of runes similar to those on Sean’s body.  
  
“You have seen death. You have touched it. You were apart of it and you came back.” Sean studied Stiles’ hand. “Druids weren’t meant to do death magic.” He sighed and picked up a thorn from one of the near by black rose bushes. He quickly carved a few extra runes on Stiles’ hand, but instead of hurting or cutting his skin, the runes seemed to be in his magic alone. Stiles marveled as the new runes melted into the others seem to move it and structure them better. He wasn’t sure what it said, but he knew it made more sense now. “There. That’ll make it so you can at least start to control it.” He smiled up at Stiles.  
  
“Thanks...” Stiles felt something in Sean and blushed as Sean let him go and his magical tattoos faded back into his skin. “I need someone to teach me...”  
  
“Oh I’ll be doing that. By the time I’m done you might be able to drink other people’s deaths away from them so they don’t die.” Stiles blinked at him wide eyed. “I know the fox you had in you drank pain and suffering. With the new runes you can use that to drink in death.” He tossed Stiles a leathery fruit and the second it touched his hands they both showed their blackened fingers and runes, all of them glowing with a sort of blood red light that Stiles felt soak into him. He watched the fruit start to grow healthy in his hands.  
  
“How...” He gasped, getting a little drunk on the power.  
  
“You are a creature of life who has known death’s kiss and now drink in death. But where as I’m a creature of death who drinks in death, I can only give more death in kind. You give life.” He picked up the very ripe and healthy looking fruit that was now a vibrant red orange color instead of an old leathery looking dull red color. “But be careful. While you can drink in someone’s death and restore life to them... Doing so comes at a cost to you.” He helped catch Stiles as he got light headed. “If you’re not careful you can kill yourself doing this. You have a finite amount of life force in you. You have to rebuild it and keep your strength up.” Sean looked at Grant. “Maybe you should take him to the kitchens?”  
  
“Excellent plan.” Grant helped steady Stiles and lead him back to the door they’d come through, but as he touched it the glass moved to show a kind of spice rack and kitchen scene. Stiles was quite through all this. Riding the high of the magics in him now, but also feeling a little weak from giving away part of his life to the plant. He felt his eyes go wide and his mouth fall open as they walked into a room that looked like a cathedral or something out of the Harry Potter movies. Rows of tables lined the room and he was lead to the nearest one and upon sitting down at an empty plate, he looked around. “Do eat.” Grant pointed down at his plate, which he found now had a double cheese burger, a large helping of curly fries, and a milk shake sitting in front of him.  
  
“How...?” Stiles asked as he dug into his food.  
  
“The plates are from a mystical realm and are made from desiramite. It’s kind of like quartz on earth, it’s kind of everywhere where it’s from. But the plates pick up on the magic of the person sitting in front of them and convert that into the food they most desire to be eating.” Grant smiled as his own plate was suddenly full of a kind of blue green paste.  
  
“Whatat?” Stiles asked around a mouth full of curly fries.  
  
“I don’t have a digestive system in the traditional sense that you’re accustomed to. I have... Different dietary needs.” Grant used a spoon to eat the paste. “To me this is appetizing. To you... It would probably taste like so much moist grass.” He smiled at Stiles’ face. “But to me it tastes about like that hamburger tastes to you.”  
  
“Is there a way I can take one of these plates up to where ever I’m sleeping?” Stiles smiled. “I’m not sure I’m up for hunting up this place and or you in the middle of the night when I need a snack.”  
  
“I’ll have a place setting delivered up to your chambers.” Grant nodded, nibbling more on his paste.  
  
“So... Elephant in the room I’m attracted to men... Well a man...” Stiles sighed after eating about half his sandwich.  
  
“And?” Grant blinked at him.  
  
“That’s not going to be like a problem is it?”  
  
“Shouldn’t be. Who knows, it might make things go easier with the fae. They like to seal their deals with sex and I’m sure they find out you prefer male sex partners they’ll have some of the most beautiful men you’ve ever seen throwing themselves at you to help seal the deal.”  
  
“But other then that we’re good?” Stiles blinked, a little shocked that it was that easy.  
  
“Magic is ancient Mr. Stilinski.” Grant smiled. “It sees both sexes as equal, and valued. And your personal preference on sexual partners doesn’t effect the magic all that much. There are more rituals that are open to you then a heterosexual male mage, and we will have to substitute a couple herbs here and there but in the long run it’s not that big of a deal. Some of the other realms are run by sexualities that would make most humans blush and find difficult to wrap their heads around. It’s part and parcel with magic I’m afraid.” He shrugged.  
  
“How about you?”  
  
“What about me?”  
  
“Do you like men or women?” Stiles looked at Grant.  
  
“Neither actually. I prefer a sort of gender neutral creature that humans aren’t aware exists.” Grant smiled. “In fact I’ve been seeing my beloved on and off for quite some time.”  
  
“Well good on you.” Stiles smiled. “I like that someone’s got a working love life around here.” He went back to eating his meal and it was quiet as they both ate for a long time.  
  
“You do realize that if you choose you’ll have a VERY active sex and social life now?” Grant breached the silence first.  
  
“What?”  
  
“Well the fae aren’t the only ones who like to do things with sex. And you’ll probably have to be seen in the magical circles, once we give you enough training to be safe in those circles. And there will be parties and such. I suspect you’ll find someone eventually.” He smiled at Stiles.  
  
“Well here’s to not having to use my hand every day.” Stiles raised his milkshake.  
  
“Oh is that how your people do it.” Grant smiled.  
  
“Wait... How do you do it?”  
  
“Well first you unbutton your fleshy pouch and...”  
  


***

  
Stiles had regretted learning so much about Grant’s anatomy but it’s not every day that you discover that your live in lawyer is a hermaphroditic squid demon like creature with a LOT of very interesting things going on under his suit pants. They’d finished their meal and he’d shown Stiles back up to the main room they’d found each other in when Stiles first came in. Grant had then bespelled his possessions to float along to the room just off the main room where Stiles would be sleeping. He left Stiles to unpacking and setting up house while he retired to his own rooms for the evening. It was apparently one of his and his beloved’s on nights and Stiles had no desire to interrupt. He’d finished setting up his bedroom, thankful for the much larger bed and room to pack away his things in. And enjoyed a small snack from his flatware that apparently was very good at what it did with providing his meals. Though currently he found himself in a problem he really should have asked the answer to before letting Grant get on with his night.

He was on the hunt for the bathroom. Which normally wouldn’t have been an issue but the castle was quite massive. The first door he’d opened had lead to a room full of tools and baskets. The second had lead out onto a balcony. The third has looked promising but now as he stood ankle deep and barefoot in a bog unable to even find the door that had lead him here he was starting to think he really should have just went off the balcony. He was muttering to himself about this when he spotted a short squat someone smoking a twig and blowing out the noxious fog that filled the bog he was in.

“You wouldn’t happen to know the way to the bathroom would you?” Stiles hoped. The strangely lumpy figure looked at him, and then pointed to the left. Stiles thanked him and he trudged off that way finding a door that lead to one of the largest bathrooms Stiles had ever seen in his life. It was simply massive containing showers, baths, toilets, and more. Stiles quickly went about his business and even showered before going back to the door, dressed in his sleep pants that the room had provided after presumably taking his cloths to be laundered. He wondered absently if the door was going to open back out on the bog and if he’d just need to wash his feet and ankles again when he opened it and discovered a tropical rain forest instead. “Okay...” Stiles walked out into it and was relieved to find a path he could clearly follow. Walking along he quickly realized there was a stream that seemed to be made of some kind of beer if he was smelling right.

“Great... I have a place that rains beer....” Stiles shook his head and kept on going till he stumbled across a spot where for no apparent reason there was a cross section of pipes floating in mid air. They were ancient and rusted, and when he looked in the ends he could see strange fluids flowing down them in endless pipe work but they seemed to be just hanging there not connected to anything. They were leaking strangely colored fluids on one another and down on the plant life where a series of small pod like things, about the size of a baby, lay in a pile. Stiles wondered about magical toxic waste and the effects on the environment and was going to have to tell Grant about this, when he heard a gurgling voice.

“Who go dere?” He looked over at black little eyes, two on either side of what he assumed to be a nose, looking through the lush blue bushes at him.

“I’m Stiles... I... Sort of own this place now... Who are you?”

“No name. Just am.” The voice said as if daring him to contradict it.

“Okay.” Stiles nodded. “You come out of one of those?” He gestured to the pods.

“Am first.” The little thing said again, what skin he could see was pale almost grey but almost transparent all the same.

“Do you think the others will come out of their pods soon too?” Stiles looked at the pods thinking about more of these things running around which were clearly the result of mixed magics.

“Maybes.” The little thing kept it’s eyes trained on Stiles.

“Do you want to come out of there?” Stiles tried to sound non threatening. Not that he knew remotely enough about magic to be threatening.

“No.” It gave a firm answer.

“Why?” Stiles tried to give his best blank face.

“Not whole.” It’s voice gave the impression maybe it had sharp teeth. He was guessing it was some kind of imp or goblin going off the size. They’d had some imps once in Beaconhills... They’d been mess creatures. This wasn’t that exactly, but it might have had a start as some sort of imp like creature.

“What do you mean not whole?” Stiles turned that phrase over and over in his head.

“Needs more to be whole. Not safe round da others.” He gave a sharp look at Stiles. Clearly intelligent enough to realize it wasn’t formed naturally and that the process of the mixing magics hadn’t made it right enough to stand a chance against the other things that resided in the house. After the things he’d seen on the way to the bathroom Stiles was quite in agreement with the little guy.

“What do you need to be whole, maybe I can give it to you?” Stiles held out his hand to the creature. He heard sniffing from in side the shaking bush and before he could do anything about it a blur of movement came out and bit his hand and he recoiled the spot where he was bleeding from. The trail going back in to where the bushes were now trembling horribly.

“blood... Needed blood....” The voice seemed to get stronger now. Fuck, Stiles was so not up for being bled for this creature’s continued existence.

“Did you get enough?” Stiles hoped that it was yes.

“Yes.” So there was someone up there willing to give him a break for once. Stiles started to cautiously reach towards the bush when there was a flash of crimson light and a puff of orange like smoke. Stiles pulled back the bush to find instead of a blood soaked imp, a small almost child like version of himself. The difference being that this him was sitting there with small cute little fox ears sticking out from the side of his head, extra large eyes, wearing only a loin cloth of plaid material and had tribal tattoos that looked vaguely like runes.

“You okay?”

“Yes yes.” The little him nodded it’s head looking around confused.

“Did you look like this before?” Stiles figured he didn’t, figured it had something to do with his blood and the magics and the creature looked at him and shook it’s head. “Okay. How do you feel?”

“Puff puff.” It gestured with it’s hands like something exploded.

“I beg your pardon.”

“Puff puff!” It gestured again.

“Is that your name now?” Puff puff nodded. “Okay then Puff puff, may I call you Puff for short?” Again Puff nodded. “Okay. My name is Stiles.” He held out his hand and shook the hand of the tiny little guy. “How do you feel?”

“Feel fine. Little thirsty.” He stood up and walked over on his tiny little legs and pulled a large leaf off of a stubborn plant and dipped it into the river to get himself something to drink. He sipped the beer and seemed happy enough.

‘Yep, definitely takes after me.’ Stiles thought to himself.

“If you put some blood on them, dey come out like Puff too.” Puff gestured with his head towards the pods. Oh, lovely a small army of cute tiny Stiles running around, that couldn’t possibly go wrong... And suddenly he wanted to make them and sick them on Derek just to get even with him. He vaguely felt bad for that but went over anyways and squeezed the wound so some blood dropped on each of the pods that squirmed.

“There you go.” Stiles smiled.

“Now Puff Puff not be alone.” Puff smiled.

“Puff, if you come with me, can you find your way back here?” Stiles tried to figure out where here was to begin with.

“Where we go?” Puff tilted his head.

“Well I was thinking my bedroom for now, and in the morning I’d have my friend Grant take a look at you.”

“Kay kay.” Puff nodded, came up close and put his hand out. Stiles took it and in a puff of red light and orange smoke they were suddenly in Stiles bedroom.

“I... You can teleport. That, that definitely will come in handy in a place like this.”

“What telleports?” Puff frowned.

“Teleport is when you can think of a place and be there with out having to take the long way there.”

“Long way sucks.” Puff frowned sharply.

“That I think we both agree on....” Stiles pulled out one of the dresser drawers and put some extra blankets in it. “This good enough to sleep in?”

“What sleep?”

“Sleep is when you lay down and you don’t move and you recover your strength for the next day.”

“Kay kay, sleep now.” Puff stretched and yawned before climbing into the dresser drawer and curling up, fastly passing out.

‘Yep. Just like me if I’d drank that much beer.’ Stiles nodded to himself and made his own bed. He absently wondered if this meant he could teleport himself or if that was something they got from the mixtures of magic that Puff had been born from. Hard telling. Hopefully Grant would have a means of knowing in the morning.

***

  
“Grant, can you come in here...” Stiles poked his head in the door that he knew was Grant’s door. Grant stood up from his bed, a very long cock and a few tentacles moved around with his body as he got his bearings. He nodded to stiles as his crotch folded itself together and seemed to pull a flap of skin across itself.

“What’s going on?” Grant asked as he finally found his robe.

“I forgot to ask how to get to the bathroom last night. I found it... But I kind of found an accident on my way back.”

“An accident?” Grant raised an eyebrow.

“Exposed pipes hanging in mid air.. It was like a link in the pipes was just there. Anyways, the internal integrity wasn’t compromised, but the external was. They were leaking onto one another and the compound they were leaking grew these pods.” Grant was looking more alarmed by the second. “One of the pods had opened and while I talked to the being that had hatched, I accidently offered it some of my blood.”

“How do you...”

“Not the point.” Stiles quickly talked over the stunned Lawyer. “Once he had my blood he turned into this.” Stiles pulled back the blankets and showed Grant Puff. “Meet Puff Puff, I call him Puff for short. He teleported us back here when I suggested going to my room till morning when you’d be available...” Stiles looked up at Grant who was failing horribly at doing blank face.

“So with in 18 hours of being keeper, you found a damaged part of the castle, met a new life form, and created an entirely new species of magical being...” Grant glanced up at Stiles. “I’m not sure if I should be proud or run away in fear of what you’ll do in the next 18 hours.” He looked more then a little wary.

“I’m hoping it’s less a run away thing as it is a... I don’t know, happy accident?” Stiles looked down at Puff who groggily woke up.

“Who dis?” Puff glanced at Grant.

“This is my friend Grant, he’s going to make sure you’re okay.”

“Grant good guy?” He looked at Stiles.

“Yep, Grant’s one of the best good guys.” Stiles smiled.

“If Stiles like you, Puff like you.” Puff stood up and put out his hand.

“A pleasure to meet you. If you don’t mind.” He gestured to the door and the pair of them vanished in a flash of red light and orange smoke, and as Stiles sniffed, a faint trace of root bear in the air.

“Oh that’s just cool to look at.” Stiles chuckled as he walked out of his bed room to find them both in the hub room that he was calling his living room.

“Thank you Puff, if you’d stand right there, this won’t hurt a bit.” Grant had Puff standing on top of some sort of carved seal on the floor. “If you’d please darling.” Grant said and the room darkened, a shaft of light levitated Puff up to about Stiles’ shoulders off the ground and began to scan him. Stiles noticed a book fall off a shelf and ink start appearing on a blank page.

“What’s she say?” Grant asked form where he was watching Puff.

“A lot of words that I don’t want to repeat.”

“She’s angry she grew new life and didn’t know about it probably.” Grant chuckled.

“Yeah not knowing your going to spawn new life until after it happens tends to make a lot of people cranky.” Stiles commented dryly before reading over the notes. “She says he’s healthy, but he’s something new. A mix of a variety of magics some how my blood caused him to shape shift into this booze fueled teleporting mini me. Though to tell you the truth all of that just boggles my mind.” Stiles shrugged. “Uh she also suggests that we get someone down to check the leak because something could be wrong all over the pluming if she’s leaking.” He nodded. “And she said she’ll make a village for the others to live in with Puff when they hatch.”

“Puff Puff like her.” Puff replied as the light slowly put him back down.

“You treat her like a lady and she’ll treat you right Puff.” Stiles smiled.

“What lady?” Puff frowned.

“A lady is a person who deserves to be treated with kindness, respect, dignity, and honor.” Stiles watched Puff nod.

“She nice lady.” He patted the floor before teleporting up to the sofa and sitting down to look at both Stiles and Grant.

“So what do we do?” Stiles looked at Grant.

“I suppose, as the head of their tribe, you can negotiate a treaty with Puff allowing you to call on him and his tribe as you need.” Grant looked thoughtful.

“What negotiate?” Puff looked to Stiles.

“It means I’d ask for your help and if you decided to help I’d help you when you need it. Like give you things...”

“What things?” Puff tilted his head.

“Well we know you run on the beer that runs in the place you were born, which can I just say is cool.” He said looking at Grant. “So... Maybe something stronger... I always liked a good whiskey.”

“What whiskey?”

“Oh my friend... That is a question that you must experience to know the answer.” Stiles got up and came back with a bottle from his room and poured Puff a glass. Puff downed the whole thing, hick-upped and burped a little flame. He giggled and stood up on his tiny little legs.

“WHISKEY IS COOL!” He jumped and teleported up in the air landing on the soft sofa with a thud.

“Okay so whiskey in return for your help when I need you, does that sound like a fair offer?”

“Sure sure.” Puff waved at him. Seeming to almost grow more capable of understanding things the more drunk he was.

“Do we need to shake on it?” Stiles looked at Grant who nodded. Stiles put out his hand and Puff took it and shook.

“To negotiations and more whiskey!” Puff smiled.

“I can drink to that.” He poured another round for Puff before drinking his own. Puff sipped it this time. He laid on his back after it was done, sitting it safely on the nearest table and putting his little hands together on his chest. “Whatcha thinking about buddy?” Stiles smiled.

“Try figure out if teleport move Puff through world or if teleport move world around Puff.” He looked over at Stiles.

“Okay I’m just going to say it, you’re ability to become more impressively intelligent while your getting drunker scares the hell out of me.” Stiles looked at Puff.

“I suspect he has some gnome or troll in his creation.” Grant chuckled, the other two looked at him. “Gnomes act kind of like they’re being given sugar when they are exposed to spirits... They become hyper. Where as dwarves become nearly indestructible. And trolls become more crafty at their building. It’s why some of the most dangerous troll buildings have fountains of ale through out them.”

“Good to know. When dealing with trolls always make sure they’re sober.” Stiles nodded to himself.

“Sober trolls.” Puff giggled.

“I second that.” Stiles raised his glass.

“I fear for the safety of the universe while you two drink.” Grant sighed.

“Think of it this way Grant, at least we worked out a deal that benefits everyone with out any down sides, and it’s my second day here.” Stiles smiled.

“This is true.” Grant sighed. “Doesn’t make what I said any less true though.” He gave Stiles a sharp look.

“Right... right.” Stiles nodded. “So, breakfast, then we go down and if you have someone who can take a look at the pipes we’ll all go down to where the pods should be about ready to birth the rest of Puff’s tribe.”

“It sounds like a plan. I’ll see who we can get in here.” Grant walked out of the room. Stiles smiled and watched Puff doing little movements with his hand. Sparkles were trailing after his fingers as he moved them and Stiles was about to ask him what he was doing when a little puff of smoke formed into a little pink ball of fire but it wasn’t burning anything.

“Puff I think you just conjured fox fire for the first time.” Stiles said letting the tone of awe fill his voice.

“Fox fire fun, it dances.” Puff played with the little ball of fire till it vanished when there came a knock at door.

“Wait here Puff.” Stiles stood up and walked to the door, opening it to find Leo on the other side. “Hey man, what’s up?”

“I just wanted to... Holy fuck.” Leo looked past Stiles at the state of the apartment. “Dude what did you do?” Stiles was about to push him out the door and close it behind him when Puff teleported in front of him.

“Who dis?” He looked at Leo carefully, his eyes glowing amber. “Him smell wolf.” Leo stepped back looking at the ‘kid’ on Stiles’ chest now. “Him a good wolf?” Puff looked at Stiles.

“This is Leo, Leo’s a good wolf. He’s a good friend.”

“Ok.” Puff teleported away.

“Stiles I think we need to have a VERY serious fucking discussion about your renters agreement... because I’m pretty sure it covered no renovations and NO KIDS!” He hissed.

“First, Puff isn’t a kid, he’s... Well he’s a chieftain of his tribe, who are magically contracted to come to my aid when I provide them with whiskey.” Stiles said very up front. “As for the renovations, what renovations.” He quickly closed the door and opened it again to reveal his old apartment. “I got a few magical artifacts form my grandparents, one of them was a house that can only be accessed by this.” He held up the key he had around his neck. “So I am still renting the apartment and it’s still intact. I’m just also using the front door to open to an ancient source of powerful magic because apparently I’m a witch and I’m going to be training...” Stiles shrugged.

“Oh. Okay then. I..uh.. What?” Leo looked at Stiles lost.

“I’m sorry to interrupt.” Stiles heard Grant say so he closed the door and reopened it with his key, opening it to the castle. “But we don’t have anyone who can deal with plumbing problems.” He sighed. “At least not in the castle. It’ll be weeks before we can have someone come in... And frankly I’m not sure if giving the problem weeks to create an even larger tribe is a wise course of action...” He glanced at Puff who was pouring his own glass of whiskey.

“True. Hey Leo, do you know anyone who knows anything about plumbing?”

“I.. Know a few things...”

“It okay if he comes in?” Stiles looked at Grant.

“I suppose if you trust him. Just fair warning. Eat nothing offered by the walls, or you might not be able to leave.” Grant gave him grave eyes before walking off.

“Who’s the guy in the robe?”

“That would be my lawyer.”

“You’re sleeping with your lawyer?”

“What? No, god no. I don’t think I have the equipment to sleep with him.” Leo frowned. “Let’s just say there’s a lot going on under that robe.” Stiles showed Leo in and walked him into the main room. “Puff do you think you can take the four of us back to where your tribe is?” Puff stood up and nodded, jumping into the air he landed in Stiles’ arms, grabbed a hold of the other two and suddenly they were standing not far off from where the pipes were dripping on the now empty pods.

“My tribe!” Puff teleported out and found four other beings like himself just with different colored eyes and hair hiding in the bushes.

“And there are more of them... Great...” Leo decided to ignore it and head towards the pipes. “So... Magic and plumbing... And how are they just sitting up there?”

“I’d have to say it’s probably a break down of the mystical ingratiation charms.” Grant sighed. “If you can get the pipes to stop leaking I think I can fix the charms, it’s the compounds they’re creating from the leaks that’s breaking the charms.”

“Okay, sealing pipes I can do.” Leo turned back to Puff. “Can you take me to the main room so I can go get my tools and bring me back here?”

“Sure, Puff have enough whiskey for now.” Puff nodded.

“What whiskey?” Asked a silver haired one of the tribe, and Stiles realized he was going to have to name their tribe soon or give them all names. Both ideally.

“Whiskey is cool.” Puff smiled before teleporting out with Leo.


	3. History

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The youngest sorcerer for the house of the wolf, the only living heir, is about to learn that his isn’t the only house still kicking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s hoping you guys still love where this story is headed.
> 
> Warnings. Blood, Violence, and Character Death.

“Doctor Brant, you might want to have a look at this.” A thin woman in glasses spoke into a tent as she panted for breath, having run from the dig site to here to get the Doctor.   
  
“Emmaline, what is it?” A tall man with salt and pepper hair stood up from his chair where he’d been going over dig reports.   
  
“We found something that doesn’t belong in the site...” She bit her lip.   
  
“Contamination or the locals playing tricks on us like last time?” He sighed.   
  
“Neither...” She looked worried.  “We translated the carvings around what we found.  They talk about what we found... It’s well the ancient people who lived here knew about it...” She looked scared now.  “But it’s not something someone should find in a thousand year old dig site.” She was positively shaking.   
  
“Show me.”Doctor Brant had been to all the major dig sites of the last twenty years. He’d seen just about every great find and knew of quite a few that had been a hoax.  So he didn’t see what could be so disturbing to the grad student helping his dig.  He walked slowly behind her, the leg of his had been acting up since they came here.  The bones aching as if a storm was always just over the horizon and he couldn’t place why, since they hadn’t had a drop of rain in ages.   
  
“Right here Doctor Brant.” Emmaline pointed to a large circular area they’d already cut open.  He blinked at it instantly wondering why they’d went round when they usually cut square patches of earth away in the grid to get a better map of the area.  He looked over the edge into a dark cave like structure and went to the ladder.  Climbing down and checking every few feet he frowned as he finally saw what she’d been talking about.  Surrounded in stones that had markings that he could clearly see said something about a metal bird, was a six foot long metal bird body, with wings that had to be closer to 14 or 15 foot long each.  Giving it a 30 foot wing span if those wings had been sculpted out, but instead they’d been sculpted down.  He winced as he stepped off the ladder, it wasn’t just his leg now. Every bone in his body felt wrong.  He frowned, there shouldn’t be any storm pressure all the way down here.   
  
“What have you got Hal?” Doctor Brant asked the boy who was bent over the thing cleaning it off.  His shaggy black hair tide back in a man bun as the kids were calling it, his thick glasses low on his nose.  Doctor Brant had picked him for this dig specifically because Hal’s ancestors had come from this area, he spoke the native tongue and had ties here that helped them secure workers and protection when need be.   
  
“According to the glyphs they called this the fire bird, and the ancient people watched it get defeated by a wolf spirit.” He pointed behind him to carvings that pretty much spelled that out.  “But here’s the thing.  This metal is like nothing I’ve ever seen.” He took a hold of one of the wings and to Doctor Brant’s shock it moved like a freshly minted joint instead of a metal sculpture.  “The joints are still moving.  And each feather isn’t just formed, it’s actually open to allow some sort of fluid to flow back and forth inside.  This thing makes no sense.” He was still leaning close cleaning it.   
  
“Tell him about the equipment.” Emmaline said as she got off the ladder herself.   
  
“We can’t use any of the electronics down here.  The closer we got the worse the readings were.  They went insane.  We managed to get the magnetic shielding to work for a moment and then we realized why this place was making our tech go insane.” He pointed his brush at the metal bird, that Doctor Brant was realizing had no head.  “This thing has two opposing electric fields alternating around it in such away that it’s actually generating a low level emp.  This entire room is saturated in so much elector magnetic radiation that I can’t begin to explain.” He looked up at the Doctor.  “Doctor Brant, this thing, as far as I can tell, crashed here from a great height.” He pointed to the impact fractures to the ground.  “And then my ancestors built this temple to it all those years ago.  To keep it safe from the wolf.” He pointed to another series of glyphs.  “They said that while the wolf was a protector of man, the fire bird was our protector and we had to protect it.” He shivered, the room suddenly feeling colder too.   
  
“Emmaline, call the construction company I want this thing brought up.  The three of us will go to the labs and figure out what we’re dealing with.  I don’t know what to make of this.  Don’t file any paper work on it yet...” He added as she started up the ladder, nodding to him as she went.  “What the devil did we find here....”   
  


***

  
  
“So what’s it going to cost me to get the pipes done?” Stiles asked as he helped hand Leo the tools he asked for.   
  
“I have no clue.” Leo laughed from where he was on a ladder cleaning off one of the pipes as he sealed it behind him.  “I mean normally leaky pipes are covered in your rental contract and your rent.  But that’s for pipes that are actually IN not only our building but inside our dimension.”   
  
“I have a feeling it doesn’t actually say that in my renters agreement.” Stiles crossed his arms.   
  
“Probably not.  My grandmother didn’t think we’d ever have any kind of magic stay here.” Leo chuckled as he went about finishing off the pipe he was on.  “Though I think what ever it is,  it should include hazard pay.” He said as he dropped the rag he’d used to clean that pipe as it dissolved into ashes.   
  
“Grant, please tell me we have money here... Because I’m not sure I have enough to cover the pipes let alone hazard pay in case of lost limb... Hell I know my insurance wont cover this...” Stiles sighed.   
  
“Do you take cash, credit, check, gold, or sexual congress in form of payment?” Grant stood there straight as a rail in his suit, in the middle of a rain forest, by a river of booze looking over a ledger like he was at a business meeting.  Stiles blinked at him for a moment.   
  
“I can pay for stuff with sex?” Stiles frowned.   
  
“Well either yourself or I, or one of the staff.” Grant looked at him.   
  
“I’m not asking any questions about who paid with sex in my family because I never want to know the answer.” Stiles looked back at Leo.  “So I suppose it’s up to you.”   
  
“I’d say sex but you’re not my type.” Leo chuckled.  “I’m kind of a tits and ass man.  Don’t get me wrong, great ass, but I like my dates to have tits.” Leo went back to working on the pipe.   
  
“We do have a spell to give you breasts if that’s what you’d like.” Grant said as he looked at Stiles.   
  
“I think we’ll have to check who is on staff to take care of your needs...” Stiles gave Grant a half glare.   
  
“I suppose once he’s finished we can stop by the harem and see who’s awake.” Grant shrugged.   
  
“There’s a harem in here too?” Stiles frowned, wondering why he hadn’t stumbled across it yet.   
  
“Yes, both male and female, as of about 1332 one that is made up of hermaphrodite or inntersexed people.” Grant flipped a page in his ledger.  “Do you have a specific type?” Grant looked at Leo.   
  
“Seeing as some of the things I’ve seen walking around here... Let’s start with human shaped with human compatible sex organs, medium firm tits, and an ass about like Stiles here.” Leo smirked as Stiles glared up at him.  “What, it’s a great ass.” Leo smirked again.   
  
“Do you have preference on hair color?” Grant asked.   
  
“So long as it’s hair and not like some dangerous magical substance, no.” Leo glanced at how the last leak was now leaking gold and iron coins from where he’d sprayed the cleaning fluid.  “Uh... You apparently have a money leak now...” Leo frowned.   
  
“Oh yes, that must be the line that runs into the floating gardens, do wipe off the cleaning solvent, as soon as it’s dry it should stop that leak.” Grant nodded as he went back to the ledger.   
  
“Stiles, your house is fucking weird.” Leo shook his head as he went back to what he was doing, wiping down the pipe till it was dry and watching the coins get smaller and smaller till only a half a coin formed before the leak stopped and he sealed it shut.   
  
“Yeah... I mean the bathroom is over there, and you don’t want to know what I went through to get to it.” Stiles shook his head.   
  
“Mind if I clean up in there?” Leo raised an eyebrow.   
  
“Go a head.  Leave the door open though, this place tends to... Move around if you don’t know what you’re doing.”   
  
“Gotcha.” Leo waved, went into the grand bathroom and swore under his breath as he washed up.   
  
“So... Can we use that door to get to the harem or is there another door, and when were you going to mention the harems?” Stiles looked at Grant.   
  
“I wasn’t aware you were looking for sexual partners or I’d have brought it up before now.” Grant shrugged.  “Seeing as you believed Ithiri was someone named Scott, am I right in assuming you’d want to visit the male harem? “ Stiles blushed and nodded.  “I’ll make arrangements.” He smiled.   
  
“There’s not like a special ritual I have to do since I’m a virgin right?” Stiles asked as they waited for Leo.   
  
“You’re a... Oh.  Oh dear...” Grant drew a symbol in the air with magic and let it fade in front of Stiles.  “That should... Maybe help.” He sighed.   
  
“What was that for?”   
  
“Most of the harem consists of beings who... Feed on sex.  A virgin is like a delicacy to them.  If you make it out of the room with out being drenched in fluids I’ll be shocked.”   
  
“Great, the one place in the world where being a virgin is going to get me extra sex, and I own the place... Yeah this place is DEFINATELY looking up.”   
  
“So...” Leo came back and picked up his tools.  “To the harem?” He smirked.   
  
“You are accepting sex as payment correct?” Grant gave him a hard eye.   
  
“Absolutely, for this.  The rent’s the same Stiles, but maybe we can work something on the side...” He smirked as Grant walked up to the bathroom door, closed it, turned the handle and suddenly the door was strangely all gold and red as he opened it into a large circular room full of pillows and a sweet scent in the air.  The room was only about 20 foot wide but in the dead center was a person in a long black covering that only left their eyes visible.  The person stood there silent and still as Grant walked up to the person and showed them the list of traits he’d written down.  Two gloved hands came out of the covering and clapped, a door opened behind them and Grant nodded.   
  
“I’ll have another door request in a moment, but this is for payment purposes right now.” The figure nodded and they walked through the door to a room that basically was a replica of the room before, but instead of a floor in the middle, there was a bed that took up the entire center of the room, right up to the edge of the steps leading down to it.  “You may leave your work tools here, they’ll be safe.” Grant indicated an alcove.  “Your cloths will be there as well when you’re done.” He smiled.   
  
“Do you expect me to get naked now?” Leo frowned.   
  
“Oh I expect they’ll help you.” Grant ushered him forward after he’d left his tools in the alcove and climbed on the bed.  The second he sat on the bed five women, utterly naked walked out of the shadows and began to undress Leo.  “I trust they are to your liking?”   
  
“YES!” Leo said pulling away from kissing one of them.   
  
“Then we will leave you to it.” Grant turned and walked Stiles out just as someone passed Leo’s jeans to the alcove.   
  
“Wow...” Stiles blushed as he walked out of the room.   
  
“As I said, we have... An eclectic group.” Grant nodded, before walking out to where the black clad figure stood.  “We didn’t talk about what kind of males you prefer.” He turned to Stiles.   
  
“Well I’ve only ever really felt attracted to one person.” He sighed before explaining about what Scott looked like, and how things had kind of ended before they began.   
  
“Ah, I see.” Grant nodded before turning back to the figure in black.  “Is Moss available?” He asked, and with a nod a door on the right opened and Grant thanked the figure before leading Stiles in there.  Inside was another round room, but this time done up in soft blues, golds, and creams.  The bed was smaller, only taking up a normal sized space, as there were other furniture around the room.  It all reminded Stiles of a nest some how the way things were arranged.  “Moss?” Grant called out and a door opened letting colorful plumes of steam and smoke out as a very muscular man walked out.   
  
“Yeah?” A raven haired man with an olive complexion, stood nude in front of them.  His eyes were what struck Stiles first.  One amber and one silver.  But as Stiles took in his face he realized from the sculpted cheek bones and the light dusting of stubble to the way the man’s hair seemed to have an iridescent shine to the blackness of it, all seemed to scream that he wasn’t human.   
  
“I want to present Stiles to you, he’s the newest heir to take custody of the house and it’s holdings.” Grant nodded to Stiles.   
  
“And apparently you have a taste for men?” Moss gave a soft smile as he picked up his robe from the wall and wrapped the ivory colored fabric and sat on his bed.  “Do you have a preference of how you want me?” He looked at Stiles.   
  
“I... I’ve never I...” Stiles stammered out.   
  
“Oh Grant, you buried the lead.” Moss smiled at Grant before turning his full attention to Stiles.  “Let’s start with the basics and we’ll work our way up from there.  Do you have anywhere you need to be today?” Stiles shook his head.  “Good answer.  You can go Grant, I’ll ring for you when he needs help getting back to his room.”   
  
“Thank you.” Grant bowed and left.   
  
“He’s just so tightly wound that one.” Moss shook his head before moving so he was sitting in front of Stiles.  “So, how about something really simple to get us off to a good start?” Stiles nodded and Moss touched his cheek, his hands remarkably soft for someone so muscular.  He just held Stiles’ cheek, gently stroking it as he brought Stiles down and shared Stiles’ first kiss with him, smiling into the kiss Moss pulled back and smiled at Stiles as he stroked his cheek.  “For someone who hasn’t had a lot of experience, that was pretty good.” Stiles blushed.   
  
“It’s my first... Real...” Stiles looked down.   
  
“And already you’re so good at it.” Moss nodded.  “With practice I have a feeling you’ll make men weak at the knees with it.  Shall I show you what a little touch of magic into the kiss can do?” Stiles tilted his head.  “We are creatures of magic.  We channel forces from beyond this world and from extra dimensional places that no man can name.  Surely that can be used to refine things.” Moss smirked before standing up, letting his robe fall open as he kissed Stiles.  His lips took on a powder blue color as he brought a little magic up.  And Stiles could instantly tell the difference, his entire body felt alive as the magic coursed through him, it was like getting drunk on power instead of booze.  And it went through him with a force that pulled his arousal to the forefront to where all he could think about was getting himself off.  He clung to Moss and his magic lips, his body hard and tight in the jeans as he ground himself against Moss’ thigh, practically humping him in the process before they parted.  Stiles desperately seeking Moss’s lips.  Before the other man finally spoke.  “Breathe.” Stiles frowned and realized he hadn’t been breathing, he’d been so desperate to get back inside Moss’ mouth.  He heaved and took deep breaths before looking at him.   
  
“What are you?” He gasped out.   
  
“What I am had nothing to do with that kiss.  I’m a wereraven.  My power comes from a lot of places, but I was born with a gift for magic that my parents didn’t have.  So I sought out the great houses and found one willing to take me in.” He shrugged as he looked around.  “It’s a pretty cage.  More my nest really since I’m allowed to come and go as I please.” He shrugged.   
  
“That kiss...” Stiles was still hard in his jeans, but he noticed the thick wet spot where he’d all but came just from the kiss.   
  
“Wasn’t even anything beyond a level one spell.” Stiles’ eyes got wide.  “All I did was bring my magic to the surface of just my lips, with the intent of making the kiss as pleasurable for you as possible.” He put a hand right on Stiles’ very clear and prominent erection.  “I’d say mission accomplished.”   
  
“A few more seconds of that and I’d have came...” Stiles panted, but frowned when Moss pointed down.  Stiles looked down at the floor and saw a pool of cum.  “But I...”   
  
“You came.  And hard.  But the kiss and your magic working with it, that kept you hard.” He smiled.  “With practice you’ll be able to do the same to anyone you kiss.” Stiles boggled at that idea as he looked at just how much he’d already came from just a kiss.  “Now...” Moss stroked Stiles through his jeans.  “I think it’s time to get you out of those soiled cloths, and once we get a few more orgasms out of you and some quality sex under your belt... Then we’ll move on to the shower.” Moss smirked.   
  
“Okay.” Stiles hated that his voice squeaked at that but Moss didn’t care.  He looked at Stiles like he was the only man in the world and he wondered idly if that was something he did with everyone he slept with.  He hadn’t even realized he had asked that until Moss chuckled.   
  
“Not everyone, no.  I’m good, but to give 100% of myself all the time... That would be exhausting.  Most men are happy with just the illusion that I’m only with them.” He shrugged.  “But your senses are keen and your eyes see much.  So I can afford to do no less then my level best.  Besides, when the other boys find out that I had the pleasure and the privileged of being your first... They’ll positively be all a twitter about when they’ll get to have you in their beds.” Moss smirked.  “As they should.” He continued to fondle Stiles as he undid his jeans with his other hand.  “Because frankly, who ever turned you down before, is a fool.” He knelt down and pulled Stiles right out of the top of his boxers to blow gently across the fluid covered tip of Stiles hard on.   
  
“S-shit...” Stills shuddered.   
  
“Sshh.  Let me work.” Moss winked before lavishing the tip with his tongue.  Fuck Stiles loved that sinful tongue, the way it curled around his flared head and teased the edge before going back the center to swallow his head into the warm wet mouth and begin to do things with that tongue that Stiles didn’t even have words for.  He wasn’t sure what to do, where to look other then at Moss from time to time, but Moss picked up on that he wasn’t sure and put his hands to the bed sheets to clutch at them as Moss took more of him into his mouth.  Those still blue lips stretched obscenely around his manhood as Moss swallowed him whole right up to the root before drawing back slowly.  The spark of magic in Moss’ lips tearing moans and pleading words from Stiles’ own lips as he bucked and tried to hang on.  He wasn’t sure how fast he’d cum again, normally it’d be a little while, but there was magic involved and ... Oh... Oh fuck... Stiles threw back his head and moaned as he emptied himself yet again into the warm wet tightness of Moss’ throat, the man still doing things with this throat which had Stiles’ dick head in the tightness as he vibrated his throat.   
  
“I... Fuck... I... I can’t.. I...” Stiles bucked, his orgasm starting again as if he hadn’t just went.  He felt his balls convulse as he shot again, the pleasure spiking as he seemed to keep on going.  He wasn’t sure how many times he came, or if it was just one really long prolonged orgasm, but when Moss finally released him, Stiles was still hard and his body was drenched in sweat.   
  
“I love that look in your eyes.” Moss smiled as he gently kissed Stiles’ open lips, the fucked out look in his eyes as Moss moved him about, undressing him.  Stiles vaguely knew he was naked and on his back as Moss settled between his thighs and began to gently probe at the back of his ball sack with this tongue.  Stiles hadn’t really thought about having his balls sucked before, but as Moss did it, his lips normal colored, fuck did Stiles think it was hot to see both his balls in the other mans’ mouth.  His body felt more alive then he’d ever thought he had in his life.  Had to be the hormones... Or the magic... Or... Fuck he didn’t care.  Stiles road the pleasure and let go of a tension in his body he’d only vaguely been aware was there.  He heard Moss make a strangled noise around his balls which made Stiles’ cock throb.  Fuck that was good.  He wasn’t even remotely sure where Moss had the lube hidden but he knew there was lube involved when he felt long thick fingers slide into him and open him up.   
  
He’d done that part by himself.  Learned from the internet how to finger himself, and how to use a dildo he’d bought with his fake id back in Beacon Hills.  He’d never had someone touch him there before.  And as Moss’ fingers touched his prostate, Stiles felt something coil inside him, something bigger then any orgasm he’d ever had.  And as it tightened he felt every part of his being tighten with it.  He closed his eyes, relishing in the feeling. More.  He needed more.  He needed... Moss slide his fingers, three of them home against Stiles’ prostate as he hummed around his large balls.  His other hand grasping Stiles’ weeping prick and jerking him off.  Fuck... That.. .almost almost... He was almost... It was almost... And suddenly it was like too much tension in a spring and the coil broke free of Stiles’ control and he came, shooting arches of cum from his cock high enough that he hit his own chin while Moss jerked him off.  He felt Moss convulse around his balls his movements stuttering as he worked.  He slowly came away from Stiles, his own face looking as fucked out as Stiles felt just then.   
  
“Naughty naughty.” Moss panted as there came a knock at the door.  Moss walked up to the door naked and opened it.  The figure in black spoke in a tongue Stiles didn’t understand and Moss laughed and told the figure that it was a gift from the lord of the house.  Closing the door behind him he came back and chuckled.   
  
“What?” Stiles frowned, his body still slick with cum and lube.   
  
“You just brought everyone in the entire collective harems.”   
  
“Brought... You mean...” Stiles looked out.   
  
“Some impressive sex magic.  Fuck.” Moss panted, his own cum slick down his thigh.  “I don’t think I’ve came that hard in a long time.” He chuckled as he snuggled in against Stiles.  “You are going to spoil me rotten before we ever get to full on penetration.” He smiled at Stiles.   
  
“You mean you can go again?” Stiles looked down at Moss’ own impressive piece of meat, still hard.   
  
“For you, I’m going to pull out all the stops.” He smiled.  “Not every day you meet a virgin mage who is so fucking unbelievably hot and talented.” He kissed Stiles again.  “Fuck... Though you might want to tone it down on the sex magic for a bit...” Moss chuckled.   
  
“I wasn’t even sure what I was doing.  Just felt this... coiling feeling in my gut and just kept throwing everything I had into it...”   
  
“Not bad, a class two orgasmic spell.  Could use a little work if you mean it for others only since it caught you in it too.  But as a spell over all for the bedroom I’d leave it as is...” Moss shook with the aftershocks.  “I can’t even think where it’d be safe to practice that...” Moss seemed to think before raising a hand and the room seemed to shimmer with a purple blue haze along the walls.  “That’ll keep it in here... You can try that again when one of us is inside the other... Because something tells me with the wards up, it’ll ripple and echo back and forth between us and we’ll need that shower afterwards....” Moss grinned.   
  
“So what’s next?” Stiles gave a grin that showed he was all for this.   
  
“I think you should suck your first cock.” Moss smirked and he looked down the line of his body at his swollen rod.  Stiles looked down and blushed.  A little nervous to go for this.  But as he held Moss’ cock for the first time there was a rightness to it that he hadn’t felt before.  As he stroked along the curved length he felt himself growing more bold before he bent over and took the tip in his mouth.  Stiles smiled as Moss began to stroke his cheek and whispering encouragement.   
  


***

  
  
“How’s the tests going Hal?” Doctor Brant asked as he walked into the train car where Hal and Emmaline were working near the artifact they’d found.   
  
“It’s strange.  It’s warm to the touch.” He put his hand on the metal.  “But it feels like it’s full of a liquid.” He frowned.   
  
“We might be looking at where Greek Fire came from... Or something of that kind...” Emmaline was sitting at the computer at the far end of the car.   
  
“I’ll be shocked if it’s anything we know about.” Doctor Brant shook his head.  “The sheer level of detail coupled with the fact that it’s generating a dual and mutually exclusive electrical fields... I can’t imagine where this came from...” He turned back to Hal who was leaning very close examining the craftsmanship.   
  
“I think this might be proof of something a LOT bigger then a trans planted tech from an ancient culture.” Hal looked distance.  “It worries me that we’re taking the Raven from my people.” Hal held their eye contact for a moment before going back to cleaning the artifact.   
  
“Doctor Brant, I’m starting to worry about Hal...” Emmaline said carefully.   
  
“I think we’re just treading on the edge of cultural heritage and science, and I’m not entirely sure which side he’ll come down on...” Doctor Brant shook his head.  “We’ll be fine.” He smiled and Emmaline just wasn’t sure.   
  
“What are we going to do with it?” Emmaline asked quietly.   
  
“We’re going to take it to the lab, clean it up and do some studying to see if we can get a picture of what’s inside the artifact.  I mean, it might tell secrets about our past that we can only guess at.  What ever this artifact is, who ever made it... It’s more advanced then anything we have today...” Doctor Brant seemed to get a far away look in his eyes as well.   
  
“Right.” Emmaline shook her head and emailed their supervisor at the lab.   
  
_Sir, I’m not sure what’s going on, but I recommend class 7 decon when we get there as well as isolation because Doctor Brant and Hal are both acting strange.  As if being near the artifact is effecting them.  I don’t know if it’s the dual magnetic field of the artifact that are effecting the reasoning centers of the brain or if there’s some kind of bacteria on the artifact.  I’m keeping my distance but I’m worried.  -Emmaline Rodes._   
  
“Emmaline... Have we heard back from the lab on the scans we took at the site?” Doctor Brant didn’t even bother looking at her now.   
  
“They’re curious about the dual fields and what’s causing it.  But they think they might be able to work up a method to look inside with out opening it...”   
  
“We can’t open it.” Hal turned and glared at her.  “Never open it.” He seemed to be seething at her.   
  
“That’s what I want as well Hal.” Emmaline placated him and watched him seem to snap out of it to relax as if he hadn’t looked like he was reading to charge at her for suggesting they open any part of the artifact.  Emmaline began typing again.   
  
_I don’t know if it’s a cultural thing or what, but Hal became aggressive at the mention of possibly opening the artifact.  He’s becoming more attached to it and I’m not sure what to do, suggestions would be helpful..._ She hit send and sat back waiting.  Soon enough the icon indicated she had a new message.   
  
_Ms. Rodes,_ _I am concerned about this action as well.  See if you can get Hal to step away from the artifact and tell them I want vitals to ensure we don’t need to quarantine them from the artifact.  If you are worried that something will happen before you reach the docks, leave the car and lock it, we’ll deal with them when we get them to the docks.  But if you’re safe, keep track of them and monitor the situation.  I don’t like how attached Hal is becoming.  Keep me apprised._ _-Director Harmmond_   
  
Emmaline frowned but hoped the Director was right.  She turned to the other two, and noticed with a touch of fear that Doctor Brant had moved a couple feet closer to the artifact.  She hid the email and quickly steeled herself for what ever might happen as she stood up.   
  
“Doctor Brant, the lab wants me to do a vitals check on all three of us, so that they know if they need to isolate us from the artifact in case of infection or anything that might have grown on it over the years.”   
  
“Nothing would dare defile it.” Hal gave her a dark look.   
  
“I highly doubt that anything...”   
  
“They talked about cutting your funding Doctor Brant if you don’t comply.” Emmaline saw the war of something deep and emotional go across the doctor’s face.   
  
“We’ll submit to the tests.”   
  
“But Doctor Brant..”   
  
“Hal, we’ll submit.” He gave the student a harsh look as Emmaline set up the tests.  Drawing blood, taking mouth swabs, and since she knew it was throwing off some kind of electric signal she studied their brain waves and hearts just to double check.  There was some serious deviation from normal and she was beginning to get worried but she put on a brave face, told them everything was fine and accepted the angry I told you so’s from them as they went back to all but petting the artifact.  She typed up her notes and emailed the distressing news to the Director.  Only time would tell if they would be alright.   
  


***

  
  
“I can’t believe how energized I feel after all that.” Stiles smiled as Moss dried him off.   
  
“Speak for yourself.  Damn, if I didn’t know you were magically gifted I’d ask what you were to have that much stamina.” Moss grinned kindheartedly.   
  
“Yeah, one of the perks of ADHD, I have a LOT of extra energy.” Stiles grinned back.   
  
“And you have clearly done a LOT of research.” Moss was gently stroking Stiles’ cock with the towel now.   
  
“And it so paid off.” Stiles smiled.   
  
“Oh definitely.”   
  
“I just... I kind of wanted to be good for who ever I ended up with, you know?” Stiles looked a little self conscious now.   
  
“You were perfect.  And that magic trick was just pure icing on top.” Moss smiled.  “I haven’t enjoyed myself that much in a LONG ass time.  I’m pretty happy you picked me.” Moss finished drying Stiles off and cuddled with him under the blankets.   
  
“You.. Uh...” Stiles blushed.   
  
“It’s okay to ask questions.” Moss smiled as Stiles looked relieved.   
  
“I don’t like pay you for sex do I?  I mean Harem implies you give it up to who ever the master of the harem is, and not prostitution or submitting yourself to being whored out to others.  So I’m not entirely sure what I’m supposed to do now... You know?”   
  
“Well right now we cuddle.” Moss smiled softly.  “And after a small nap then we get Grant to come get you to take you back to your room, since I’m pretty sure you don’t know how to work the doors yet?” Stiles shook his head that no he didn’t know.  “Yeah, after that, anytime you want to come down and visit, if I’m here, I’m all yours.” Moss nuzzled.   
  
“And... Is this work for you or do you like... Enjoy it... Or?” Stiles shrugged.   
  
“Well the house has had some strict custodians before.  And they made it work.  But no, this wasn’t work.  This was definitely a pleasurable treat.” Moss looked around the room.  “One that’s going to make me have to buy new sheets after this.  Might take these and frame them.” He tugged at one of the cum drenched areas of the comforter.  “I don’t think there’d ever been this much cum on my bed with out an orgy happening...”   
  
“You’re taking the questions a lot better then  most.” Stiles toyed with the sheets too.   
  
“I remember what it was like to be young and a virgin and what it was like right after.  I know you’re asking all these questions to avoid asking the ones you want to know the answer to.  But with the ADHD you can’t not ask these questions either because you want to know the answers to them as well.” Moss chuckled softly.   
  
“What am I not asking?” Stiles bit his lip.   
  
“If this means something, if it’s more then sex, if I have feelings for you.  Things of that nature.” Moss said with his eyes closed.   
  
“Oh... Uh... Well... I kind of want to know the answer but I’m also afraid to ask.  I mean... The last guy I had a crush on, the day I went to tell him and find out how we’d fit together or work around it, he was in the middle of being fucked by most of our male friends...” Stiles blushed.   
  
“What’d you do after that?”   
  
“I sort of just took off and moved here.” Stiles shrugged.   
  
“Yeah, you don’t do anything by half measures do you?” Moss chuckled as he looked Stiles in the eyes.   
  
“I was just mad and needed out of it.  The werewolves took everything from me.  I just... I couldn’t have them take that and it was just all too much.”   
  
“I can understand that.” Moss nodded.  “You do know I realized you haven’t asked the actual questions yet.” Moss said more to Stiles’ shoulder then his face.   
  
“Yeah I also realized that you didn’t answer the questions either.” Stiles gave a ghost of a smile.   
  
“And if the answer is yes?” He traced his fingers down Stiles’ chest.   
  
“Then ... I don’t know.” Stiles shrugged.  “I’ve never made it this far before.” He blushed.   
  
“I know.” He smiled softly, nuzzling Stiles.  “Does it have to have an answer?”   
  
“Please?” Stiles looked up into those alien eyes and willed the begging he felt in his heart to be in his eyes.   
  
“Yes.” Moss kept his eye contact.   
  
“To which one?” Stiles blushed.   
  
“All of them.” Moss’s face seemed to hold a world of joy inside him that was leaking out through his smile.   
  
“Oh.” Stiles smiled back and snuggled into the warmth of Moss’ arms.   
  
“So what now?”   
  
“Can we be boyfriends?” Stiles looked up.  “I mean... I don’t exactly know if this is your job... Do I get jealous over the other men you sleep with... Or women?” Stiles’ mind already going a million different directions.   
  
“I think we can try.” Moss smiled, holding out his left hand and a line of light dropped down a long scroll of paper with runes in complex configurations that Stiles had never seen before.  He looked over Moss’ shoulder as he scribbled a few runes here and there.  When he was done he pointed to a blank line.  “Just sign there if you want this.” Stiles looked at the paper, noticed absently that some of the characters where moving and changing.  He took the ink pen from Moss and signed his name.  As he did it translated it into a series of runes and rapidly dried before the paper vanished.  Moss moaned and whimpered, holding his wrists, Stiles quickly moved to look at noticed the runes his signature had become were now tattooed around Moss’ wrists.   
  
“What just happened?”   
  
“Exclusivity contract.” Moss looked up at Stiles.  “I am bound to you and only you, so long as you want me.” His eyes shined as he looked at Stiles.   
  
“So just me?” Stiles gently touched the tattoos.   
  
“Just you.”   
  
“Wow.” Stiles brought Moss’ wrists up and kissed them.  “No one’s ever done something like that for me.” He held Moss’ eyes.  “It means so much to me.” He smiled as he leaned in and kissed Moss against the bed.  They might have started the next round if it hadn’t been for a knock on the door.   
  
“Stiles I think we have a situation.” It was Grant.   
  
“Should I worry that he showed up right after I signed that?” Stiles raised a teasing eyebrow.   
  
“Naw, unless there’s some grand prophecy, me being exclusively bound to you, shouldn’t interfere with anything.” Moss shrugged, wrapping Stiles in a robe as he went and answered the door.   
  
“Normally I would let you have finished and called for me, but I was alerted to a situation out in the real world.” Grant looked gravely serious.   
  
“What happened?” Stiles frowned.   
  
“Garrow Ravenel has been found.”   
  


***

  
  
“We’ve been able to learn a little bit from the artifact while you were being seen by the doctors to double check Ms. Rodes findings.” Director Harmmond was a short man, his balding hair had once been black as pitch but stress and age had lent it to more the color of a dull grey then the sharp black he’d sported years ago.   
  
“I’m still not sure why we were isolated after we came here.” Doctor Brant stood there looking nonplussed about this whole situation.   
  
“We had to wait for your brain scans to come back clean.” Emmaline came into the room.  “You and Hal both tested positive for something similar to chemical addiction and brain damage when I tested you on the train.  What ever the artifact is, it’s able to draw people in around it to worship it.” She shuddered.   
  
“That’s why you were keeping your distance.  I remember being offended by that...” Doctor Brant frowned.  “But how did a thousand year old artifact we had to dig so far down to find, end up with the ability to mess up people’s brains?” He looked over to where they were leading Hal in, his body rocking back and forth as he sat down.  For all the world he looked like a junkie who wasn’t being allowed his next fix.   
  
“We’re still not sure.  Something to do with the outer most field.” Emmaline shrugged.   
  
“We have something on that.  It’s not being gathered or generated from outside the artifact.” Director Harmmond stated as he clicked on a display on the side of the room.  “Inside each enclosed metal space is an extra dimensional liquid that we can’t identify.  We know it’s non standard matter because of how it’s behaving.  But when exposed to certain fields, it reacts.” He showed where they’d submitted the artifact to a laser and the fields had become not only visible but seemed to lash out at the laser source.  “We managed to get an energy signature for the matter inside the metal, it’s generating the outer most field.  But it’s not generating the field that’s keeping them apart.” He brought up a color coded display of the two fields.  “Some how the metal itself has been electrified with out a source that we can detect that is separating the liquid like matter from the energy it produces instead of letting them be together.”   
  
“How is that possible?” Doctor Brant looked at the notes and scans.   
  
“We don’t know.  But it seems to be fighting to break through.  Every time we attempt to weaken the separation between them it reacts like it’s trying to get back inside the metal.” Director Harmmond shook his head.  “It makes no sense.”   
  
“Where’d Hal go?” Emmaline looked around.   
  
“Isn’t he...” Doctor Brant turned around and frowned at the empty chair but quickly shut off the display so they could see out into the lab where Hal was standing over the headless bird body.   
  
“From my body to thine, my life to thee.  My blood to thee.  May you be free.” Hal’s eyes were empty as he slight his own throat as deep as he could with the letter opener that he’d taken from some where as he came to the meeting room.  As he fell on the metal, his blood spilling on it, blue sparks began to come off of the metal.  Almost as if some sort of liquid electrical field was pealing back.  As it finally rolled off it shot out knocking the technology of the lab offline.  A pink flame engulfed the entire artifact before vanishing as it settled into the metal.  Suddenly with a sound like bones cracking the artifact moved and twisted itself till it was using it’s wings like arms to stand up.  It pointed it’s headless stump at the researchers as it engulfed in a head made of pink flames.   
  
“What... How... I...” Doctor Brant looked confused, Hal’s corpse under the creature’s feet.   
  
“I AM YOUR GOD!” A thunderous voice came from the burning skull in place of the bird’s head.  “OBEY ME!” The glass shattered as it walked forward, crushing and discarding Hal’s husk of a shell as it walked towards the group.   
  
“Stay back!” Emmaline cried, clutching her cross as she tried to crawl away.   
  
“BURN!” The voice like roasting logs spoke and with a scream every human in the building was reduced to ash.  The creature looked around and with a cry it burst into flames vanishing from sight.   
  


***

  
  
“So who’s this Garrow Ravenel?” Stiles asked as they walked towards the hall with the scenes of battle for his family.   
  
“As you are now the head of The house of the Wolf, Garrow was and is the head of the house of the flame raven.” Grant walked around to a battle scene where mages were fighting one another.  “In the time of the great coven wars the Wolf and the Raven fought one another.  The Raven’s joined with a demon clan and became the house of the flame raven.  They... They became dark magic users and sought to end all other great houses.  7,000 years ago your ancestor created a dangerous spell and tore Garrow’s soul out of his body, destroying his body.  But no one accounted for the fact that Garrow’s father had been a flame born demon.. So the soul that stood before his enemies wasn’t a human soul, it was a full formed demon of flames with Garrow Ravenel’s mind inside it.” He pointed to a scene where a pillar of pink flame stood in front of a bunch of dead bodies.   
  
“I take it he killed most of the people there that day?”   
  
“His own clan included.  He was now an immortal demon and had no need for heirs and a house.  He decimated everyone he could find.  And those who he couldn’t he hunted down over the centuries.  1000 years ago your ancestors tracked him down.  He was hunting the last set of children from his house.  But a chance to kill two of the Wolf... He couldn’t resist... and he attacked, they did battle...” He pointed to the next scene where liquid metal was coming up to form something engulfed in flames.  “He crafted a body out of the metals the tribe was working with in the area.  Creating a headless raven body for his soul to tear your ancestors apart with.  In the heart of battle your ancestor crafted a new spell.  He created a dispossession curse.”   
  
“I get dispossession being removing a demon or a soul from something but... A curse?” Stiles frowned.   
  
“Literally meaning that so long as the body was intact and pure, Garrow’s mind was driven out and the energy inside made inert.  The locals created a tomb for Garrow and sealed him away.  He couldn’t move to a new body or even use his magic because his power was inside the body of metal.  So he was trapped trying to get inside it.” Grant showed Stiles the carvings of the metal bird in the tomb.  “We thought that was the last of Garrow but one of the tribal elders contacted us, Garrow’s body was dug up by historians and taken away.” Grant looked grave.   
  
“So?  They have a magical being’s body, it’s not like they can just break the spell is it?”   
  
“No, only the blood of a willing servant will taint the body enough to let Garrow back inside.  But..” Grant frowned as he trailed off, he turned and walked into a room where a tv had clicked on.   
  
“We have cable here?” Stiles frowned.   
  
“Apparently.” Grant frowned as a news report about ash remains and a body with it’s throat cut and a void pattern in the blood of something big.  “It would seem one of the scientists fell under Garrow’s sway... And released him.” He looked at Stiles.   
  
“Oh I so do not like the sound of that.” Stiles glanced at Grant.   
  
“You’ll need to train to even hope to survive his onslaught.  He’s bound to wish your death in revenge of your Ancestors’ actions against him.”   
  
“Great.” Stiles sighed.  “Second day as a mage and I have a nemesis.” He sat down.   
  
“So it would seem.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who’s ready for a bit more Puff Puff after that?!?


	4. Tribal Customs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles decides it’s high time to sort things out with his new live in guests, the tribe of mini me’s he’s created or at least helped take form.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... you’re going to notice some things in this chapter that I’ve alluded to in two different stories. The paintings are from Lines in the Sand, and yes, they are in fact connected. And yes, this Stiles is part of who the mysterious man in Flash High is talking about.
> 
> Oh, and I sort of drew the mini me Stiles’, if anyone is interested in looking at that.

Stiles walked along the hall way he’d learned went right to the village of the Bamfs.  That’s what he’d taken to calling his mini me’s.  The tribe of Bamfs.  He was carrying a satchel full of whiskey.  They’d only been alive for a couple days now and Puff had asked if they could celebrate life by marking it with some sort of all you can drink party.  Stiles had been eyebrows deep in spell books researching how to deal with his new nemesis and needed the break.  He stopped in front of a large painting of a field where he saw two dark colored eyes starring at him from with in the tall grass.   
  
“And who might you be?”   
  
“Nichy.” The tiny voice inside the painting spoke as the knobby headed creature stuck it’s head out to look at him.   
  
“Are you okay in there?”   
  
“Yeah, you’re not in the gallery though, are you?” It looked around.   
  
“No.  No I’m not... I...”   
  
“Oh, sorry thing.” And the little creature popped out of existence and vanished.   
  
“Right... now things that can teleport live in my paintings.  I’m never getting used to this place.” Stiles kept on walking till he reached the end of the hallway full of paintings of different locations and eras.  Til he found a green door with markings that indicated it opened to the Bamf village.  Opening it up he was struck with how much work they’d done.  Each of their five huts was personalized and he knew at once who lived where.  The first hut he spotted was marked in vivid blue stripes.  Shift loved his blues and stripes most of all.  Stiles squinted and finally reached out putting his hand on empty space only to suddenly have a blue haired Bamf smile up at him.   
  
“You getting better at that.” Shift smiled up at him.   
  
“You’re giving me a lot of practice.” Stiles smiled.  He’d found out that each one of the Bamfs had his own power.  While Puff could teleport Shift had invisibility so long as he kept one hand on his nose.  They walked towards the next hut.  It was covered in shiny silver runes and warding marks.  He smiled, Slick had been learning a lot about magic, almost as fast as he was.  And he’d gotten to where he could cast pretty reliably now.   
  
“Hi hi Stiles.” Slick came walking out, his silver hair shining as he caused bowls to float behind him.   
  
“Nice to see you too Slick.”   
  
“Grant Grant still being a sour puss?”   
  
“Yeah.  He thinks I should put more time into studying instead of being down here.”   
  
“He needs more whiskey in his life.” Slick nodded as they walked up to Puff Puff’s hut, the swirls of red and orange marking it as his.  The smell of root beer was thick as Puff popped into being and landed on Stiles’ chest.   
  
“You late.”   
  
“I’m early.”   
  
“Whiskey is late.”   
  
“That’s true.”   
  
“Need whiskey to do the thinkings.” Puff vanished again in a puff of red smoke and orange light.  Only to reappear on the ground looking at him.   
  
“How’s the other two doing?”   
  
“Flick flick fine  Broody, but fine.  Burn burn have to move hut back again.”   
  
“I swear, leave it to an amalgam of me to figure out how to make fox fire actually light things on fire.” They walked towards the hut that was covered in detailed flames and what looked like people running away from a rather large orange haired Bamf breathing flames at them made it abundantly clearly how Burn felt about the world.  “You okay Burn?”   
  
“Burn burn fine.” He walked out, his entire body black with soot.   
  
“What burnt?”   
  
“Everything?”   
  
“Everything?”   
  
“Yep.  Everything.” Burn walked up and peeked in Stiles’ bag.  “Whiskey good.  It make things burn colors.”   
  
“Whiskey for drinking, not burning.” Puff shook his head at him.   
  
“Says you.”   
  
“Says me.” Puff nodded.   
  
“Is Flick at home?” Stiles tried to redirect the conversation.   
  
“Broody pants is home.” Burn glared at Puff before turning back to Stiles.   
  
“Broody pants?”   
  
“All he does is brood.” Burn nodded.  “You see.”   
  
“Okay.” Stiles nodded and walked up to a hut with green runes for every pack and were group that Stiles had ever seen drawn on it.  “Flick?” The door opened a crack and emerald eyes peeked out at him.   
  
“What?”   
  
“I brought the whiskey.”   
  
“I’ll be out in a minute.” He closed the door quickly and started whispering.  Stiles tried to listen in but most he could make out was Flick talking to someone about how they’d have to stay there.  He walked out, his hair shaved down like Stiles’ had been so long ago, his emerald eyes wide as he looked up at Stiles.   
  
“Broody pants.” Burn stuck out his tongue.   
  
“Burn burn stop or no get whiskey.” Puff crossed his arms.   
  
“Meany.” Burn glared but crossed his arms and quit making fun of Flick.   
  
“Got a friend in there?”   
  
“NO!” Flick looked horrified as he blocked the door to his hut.  Gods how he had ended up with Stile’s inability to lie properly was beyond him.  He’d grown out of it, but in a lot of ways Flick was who he’d been when Scott had first been bitten.  He sort of hoped that it wasn’t a dead body in there he was talking to.  But couldn’t really rule anything out since he’d never really seen Flick’s powers.  Flick looked at his hut over his shoulder and studied the runes for a bit before he relaxed.  “We fine.” He shrugged and walked towards where they’d built a kind of fire pit and sofas to lay on while they were drunk out of their tiny little heads.  He wondered if Flick was okay, but he seemed to be, for now at least.   
  
“Whiskey?” Puff asked with a smile that screamed mischief.   
  
“Okay.” Stiles opened the satchel and pulled out the bottles, he’d brought one for each of them and one for himself.  They each thanked him and took one, going to their favorite sofa to sit.  Burn took a short pull off his bottle before he opened his mouth and belched a large flame that ignited the wood in the burn pit and he smiled.   
  
“I still don’t understand how you can make fox fire burn things.” Stiles looked at him.   
  
“I’m sweet and it does things for me.” Burn smiled.   
  
“Burn burn no sweet.  Burn burn menace.” Puff shook his head.   
  
“Says you.” Burn frowned.   
  
“Guys, we have fine single malt whiskey to enjoy.  No squabbling.”   
  
“Sowwy.” They both said and Stiles let it go.   
  
“So what are we drinking to?” Stiles turned to Puff Puff.   
  
“To life.” Puff smiled raising his bottle.   
  
“To tribe.” Slick raised his bottle.   
  
“To fire.” Burn’s eyes flashed as Puff gave him a look.   
  
“To village.” Shift raised his bottle.   
  
“To whiskey.” Flick raised his bottle.   
  
“I’ll drink to all that.” Stiles smiled as he took his bottle and raised it before knocking back a healthy gulp of it, the burn spreading out from his throat.  Before too long they were over half way through their bottles and all laying on their sofas looking up at the sky.  “I wish we could see stars.”   
  
“What stars?” Puff  looked over at Stiles.   
  
“Shinny balls of light far away so they’re really tiny.” Stiles tried for making sense to his new friends.   
  
“I can do that.” Flick reached raised both arms into the air and made grabby hand motions before suddenly hundreds of tiny green specks appears in the air above them.   
  
“Perfect Flick.” Stiles smiled.   
  
“Flick flick make stars.” Puff lay there a bit. “But who make stars Stiles see outside?”   
  
“That is an ancient question my friend.” Stiles shrugged.  “Some day God, some say the big bang, I’m betting there’s even some who say magic.”   
  
“Huh, not enough whiskey to make them think on it.” Puff shrugged.   
  
“I couldn’t agree more.” Stiles nodded.   
  
“Fire pretty.” Burn was chuckling as he slowly blew flames up into the air, making them last as he drew circles with the fire.   
  
“Be careful you don’t burn yourself.”   
  
“Eh, I be fine.  More worried beer rain catch on fire again.” Burn shrugged.   
  
“You caught the rain on fire?”   
  
“Anything over fifty proof burns pretty good.” Burn looked up at the rings he’d made, one inside the other.   
  
“Fair point.”   
  
“Besides water burn too if you make enough fire.”   
  
“Should I be worry that he’s setting water on fire?” Stiles turned to Puff.   
  
“Why you think we put his hut all the way back there.  He crazy with fire.  Almost catch us on fire once.” Puff shook his head.   
  
“More then once.” Shift added.   
  
“When more then once?” Slick turned to Shift.   
  
“Three times yesterday.”   
  
“You kept sneaking into my hut.” Burn pouted.   
  
“You guys have to respect each other’s privacy.”   
  
“What privacy?” Burn wrinkled his nose.   
  
“It means leaving people alone to do things alone where you’re not.” Stiles wasn’t entirely sure that was remotely a sentence.   
  
“Oh.  Yeah me want privacy, and you better spect it.”   
  
“Oh.” Shift shrugged.  “Okay.” He looked up at the tiny lights that Flick had conjured.  “These pretty.”   
  
“Thanks.”   
  


***

  
  
“I am never drinking with the flannel brigade again.” Stiles held his head, he hated hang overs.  “Why do they get to be hang over free?”   
  
“Because they’re alcohol based life forms.” Moss chuckled softly, kissing Stiles’ temple and putting just the tiniest bit of magic into the kiss to ease the pain in his skull.   
  
“Thank you.” Stiles smiled.  “I can’t believe I drank so much.”   
  
“I can’t believe you lost a bet to Burn.”   
  
“See no more drinking with them.  Their devious.”   
  
“I think they get that from you.  Or the imp part of them.” Moss shrugged.   
  
“If I didn’t know I was mischief incarnate I’d refute that.” Stiles narrowed his eyes.   
  
“Refute is a big word for a hang over.”   
  
“Eh.” Stiles waved him off.  “It’s as bad as drinking with werewolves.  They just don’t fucking get drunk enough to do stupid stuff.”   
  
“Oh I beg to differ.  I think they get plenty drunk enough to do stupid stuff.” Moss chuckled.  “Case in point.” He pointed to the arcane tattoo that Stiles now wore as a tramp stamp, right above the cleft of his ass.   
  
“I don’t want to talk about it.”   
  
“What’s it even do?” Moss was curious and Stiles mumbled something.  “What was that?”   
  
“It makes sure my ass is always lubed up when I want to have sex.” Stiles blushed.   
  
“You were drunk enough to take the bed and loose, but coherent enough to talk Slick through casting that?”   
  
“Liquor is a tricky mistress.  Some times she’s a lady, other days she’s a stone cold bitch who wants to kick you in the nuts and make you lick bar room floors.”   
  
“You get entirely too graphic when you describe overtly negative things.  Anyone ever explain that to you?”   
  
“Eh, could be worse.  At least I don’t need to keep buying lube or taking the time to conjure it.” Stiles shrugged as he laid there half asleep.   
  
“When’s the last time you were out of the castle?”   
  
“What century is it?”   
  
“I think you just made my case.”   
  
“But I have a big scary metal bird that wants to roast me alive.”   
  
“True.  But maybe you should relax a little bit.”   
  
“I relaxed last night.  And now I pay for it.” Stiles grumbled.   
  
“Would it really be so bad to go out and have fun?”   
  
“With who?  Leo’s got to work most nights.  I’m not a part of his pack.  I don’t really have friends.  Grant’s Grant.  And you and I haven’t had a proper date yet and I’m no where near sober enough to make anything remotely decent when it comes to plans.” Stiles ticked off.  “Besides, shouldn’t I be asking if you’re just trying to lull me into a false sense of security so this Raven guy can gut me?” Stiles frowned.  “Eh forget that last part.  It was stupid and so was I.”   
  
“Was?”   
  
“Hang overs make us all bitchy.” Stiles shrugged.  “I don’t think you’re trying to kill me.  Unless death by sex is an option.” He smiled.   
  
“Death by sex... I’ve seen that done actually.  Strange way to go.  You never know if they’re moaning in bad pain or good pain.  And it kind of ends abruptly when they start to get cold.”   
  
“Yep that’s one detail too many.” Stiles got to his wobbly legs and made for the bathroom.   
  
“Don’t question my loyalty.”   
  
“You’re evil.” Stiles replied from the bathroom.   
  
“I like to think of it as morally flexible.”   
  
“I like that.” Stiles replied, wiping his mouth with a towel.  “Morally flexible to go with your very physical flexible nature too.”   
  
“Careful, flattery will make me get my sling out.”   
  
“too tired for kinky sex.” Stiles whined and giggled.   
  
“How is that funny?”   
  
“I spent so many years wanting kinky sex, hell any sex, and now I can have it as much as either of us wants it, and I’m too tired and hung over for it.”   
  
“Well the last hour or so was kind of strenuous.”   
  
“Sorry for cracking your wards.”   
  
“It’s okay.  I didn’t know you could do that.”   
  
“It’s all this spell training.” Stiles yawned.   
  
“No, not you you, you as in anyone on the planet.” He glanced over at the large impact fracture in one of his wards.  “I mean... you were powerful enough your first time... that...” He kept looking at it.  “Stiles you might actually be able to make something orgasm to death.”   
  
“I’ll count it as a super power.” He mumbled.   
  
“Okay, sleepy time for someone.” Moss chuckled as he pulled the blankets up and snuggled in closer to Stiles who just moved in to his touch.   
  
“you feel nice.” He said quietly as they started to drift off.   
  
“Thank you.” Moss smiled.   
  
“i’m glad i’m with you.” Stiles was already too far into sleep to realize what he was saying.  “you’re amazing and the sex is amazing and i think i love you more then the sex.” He nuzzled his head into Moss’s collar bone.  “cuz the sex is amazing but your more amazing.”   
  
“Stiles?” Moss looked down only to get a loud snore in response.  He mentally chuckled to himself before wrapping himself around Stiles and holding him as he too gave into the needs of his flesh and passed out.   
  


***

  
  
“Feeling better?” Grant was sitting down having a glass of tea as he looked over his ledger at the large table in the kitchen.   
  
“Much.  Nothing quite like finding out you can probably use sex magic to murder someone to make you sleep off a hang over.” Stiles sat down and a slice of pizza appeared on his plate.  “I need to learn not to try to drink with the Bamf.”   
  
“Quite.” Grant smiled behind his cup, then frowned.  “What about sex magic?”   
  
“Well you know how I did that big orgasmic spell the first time with Moss?” Granted nodded.  “Well he put up wards to keep it from leaking out so bad.  So we’ve been doing that when we get a chance between studying and practice and the not going outside.” Stiles sighed.  “Well... all the studying and practicing made it to where when I let go of that energy this morning I managed to crack his wards to the point that they almost failed and the energy was still going.”   
  
“I... see.” Grant put his cup down.  “I think it’s time that we start working on your control.  Because clearly creating enough energy isn’t going to be a problem with you.  But.. I’m not sure it’s healthy to create that much at once.”   
  
“Oh it’s exhausting.  At least the sex part is, but the ripple back refuels me so I can go again.” He shrugged.   
  
“Go... again...” Grant looked at him puzzled.   
  
“Yeah the extra energy reenters my body and removes my refractory period.” Stiles shrugged.   
  
“Gods...” Grant pinched the bridge of his nose.   
  
“What?”   
  
“Just questioning my life choices that lead me here, that’s all.” Grant sighed before opening his eyes again.  “Right, so we’re going to have to start using the practice room for your spell practice.” Grant nodded.   
  
“Ok.” Stiles nodded.  “I’ve not been there yet have I?”   
  
“Not yet.”   
  
“Okay.  So knowing what a room is called is the first step in finding it if you don’t have a memory for that room.” Stiles got up from the kitchen table and headed to the door.  Have a clear picture in your mind of the name of the room.  And grasp the handle firmly with authority and direction, and...” Stiles took a hold of the handle, and the second he did the door changed red with gold stained glass with silver runes etched into the glass, and he pulled it open.  “open the door.” He looked at what was essentially an empty room with large runes carved into the wall in languages and styles he couldn’t even begin to imagine.  “Right room?” He moved to show Grant where he’d opened it to.   
  
“Yes.” Grant smiled.  “Not bad, not bad at all.  A couple days of lessons and you’ve gotten much better at navigating the rooms.”   
  
“It’s come in handy.  Being able to change what room my bedroom opens up to when I need the bathroom is a god send.”   
  
“That it most certainly is.” Grant nodded, finishing his tea and leaving the cup on the table, before leading the way into the practice room.  It was maybe twenty feet tall, and every square inch of the ebony walls was carved with lacquer runes that glowed as Stiles and Grant walked in.  Some as big as three foot tall, and others only an inch in size.  The patterns of the wards seemed to create a larger pattern and Stiles was following it with his eyes, instinctively taking in the markings and their placement to understand their purpose.  Grant stood silent as Stiles took in how the runes went seamlessly from floor to wall to ceiling in a continual pattern.  It seemed to run right under the practice mats that were in the center of the room.   
  
“How is the room both spherical and cubical at the same time?” Stiles frowned.   
  
“Non euclidean geometry allows it to change shape at will as magic is done in here.  No spell done in this room can effect any part of the world not inside this room.  It was designed to teach young mages how to use their magic while protecting the rest of the universe from any botched spells.  As you might imagine its has come in handy on occasion.” He smiled softly.  “The wards are written in the tongues of every known species with magic and every known kind of magic contained with in the castle.”   
  
“Should I be worried that that same logic could be applied to make a prison cell?” Stiles turned to Grant.   
  
“The cells are below.  They have different wards that effectively cut people off form their magics so that they can not escape.”   
  
“Why didn’t they put the Raven guy in there?” Stiles tilted his head.   
  
“Heads of houses... are more powerful then the standard witch.” Grant cleared his throat.  “And demon born ones even more so.  One would have to sever his mystical connection with in his soul.  Your ancestor came close with the curse they laid on him.  But as you can see, it’s limited in that it requires us to trust humans not to be tainted or corrupted by his natural field.”   
  
“Yeah.  I’m going to have to find something more decisive if I’m going to put an end to this situation.”   
  
“This is why I’ve had you working on the primmer figures to get you ready to use this room.  We’re here sooner then I assumed we would be.  But that’s probably for the best.” Grant snapped his fingers and a series of piles of various materials appeared on the floor.  “What is the Zhahine’s first principal?”   
  
“That any object so long as it be produced from a naturally occurring substance not created from sorcery is capable of supporting an artificial life construct and will seek out other such objects until it forms a cohesive being roughly humanoid in shape or analogous to the shape of the person who granted the object it’s life construct.”   
  
“Correct.  And what is the proof required to utilize the principal?”   
  
  
  
“A combination of hand gestures, and words intoned over the objects to be enchanted.”   
  
“Correct again.  Now use the proof over this pile of rags.”   
  
“Okay...” Stiles shrugged, walked over to it and started in a simple enough gesture with his hands before speaking.  “From the divine void to this object of cloth, grant the essence of life.” A spark of magic flared in his hands and the rags began to wriggle and move as if something was in the pile before it began to balloon itself up and taking more and more of a human shape before it began to pull itself up and stand on it’s now full legs.  It moved sluggishly as if it was unsure of what to do with itself.   
  
“Congratulations.  You’ve successfully created your first golem.” Grant smiled.   
  
“And why did you have me making a golem?” Stiles looked around the golem at Grant as he glanced at the other piles of other materials.   
  
“You need someone to practice your combat spells on, and something with out a soul that is simply a construct seemed better then having you attempt to murder members of the household.”   
  
“Fair point.” Stiles nodded.  “But I haven’t had any lessons on death magic or illusion magic yet.”   
  
“True.  But from what you’ve told me about your sex magic training, it’s gotten to a certain level.”   
  
“You want me to seduce the rag golem.” Stiles blinked at him.   
  
“What?” Grant’s face went blank.  “Good heaven’s no... I... where would you...”   
  
“One plus one is two, usually.  Sex magic, rag golem, sexy times to be had?”   
  
“You find it attractive?” Grant frowned.   
  
“No.”   
  
“Ah, I think we’re having a complicated problem of communication.”   
  
“How do you want me to use sex magic if I’m not having sex with the rag golem?” Stiles pinched the bridge of his nose.   
  
“Oh.  You’ve been practicing casting and holding off using the release of the spell while you focus on... other things, correct?”   
  
“The don’t cum too soon and don’t blow the magic till you do cum, yeah.  So?”   
  
“What I want you to do is to build up that energy inside yourself, and release it at one specific person.”   
  
“And how do I do that with out sex?”   
  
“Picture the sex you’ve been having.  Let it flood your mind, let the feelings the passions, fill your very being, till you can feel the energy building and then release it, but focus it ONLY at the golem, all the energy into the golem.”   
  
“Right... I’ve never done that before... so...”   
  
“I’ll be in the adjoining room.” He pointed to a spot that seemed to appear behind one of the walls, which was now made of glass.   
  
“Right...” Grant went into the room and Stiles closed his eyes, focusing on the sights and the sounds, the touches and the smells... slowly building their romps in his mind.  He felt a twinge of that place inside him where the magic started.  He started trying to tighten that area, tighten the magic.  Pull it in.  He wasn’t thinking about the sex so much anymore, just that feeling, that building, the need, the hungry need to find his release... he needed to release this power, it was the only thing he cared about in the entire world... he... he had to.. he had.... his mind went blank as he shot the energy out of himself straight at the rag golem.  There was a blinding light and he passed out for a bit.   
  
When he woke up Grant was kneeling down beside him taking his vitals and checking him over.   
  
“Did I get it?”   
  
“I believe so.” He held Stiles up enough to see not only the rag shaped ashes that vaguely looked human, but also the scorch marks on the floor and the crack in the floor.   
  
“Yeah, lucky I didn’t try that before.”   
  
“Yes... imagine if it wasn’t contained by the wards here... you might have done that to the entire castle.”   
  
“Right... no one on one sex magic till I can kill someone with out blowing up the building i’m in.” Stiles was starting to pass out again.   
  
“Something like that.” Grant sighed as he laid Stiles down.  “I think we need to see about getting a tutor.”   
  
“For what?” Stiles asked with his eyes shut.   
  
“Combat magic.  At least I think that might be the area you need help in.  You certainly have the power generation down.  And the release.  I just... I’m not sure how to teach you to release it with out damaging yourself.  It’s never been this powerful before.”   
  
“Because it wasn’t me before.” Stiles smiled.   
  
“Wasn’t...” Grant frowned.  “And who are you then.”   
  
“I’m mischief.” Stiles smiled again before passing out.   
  
“Mischief...” Grant frowned and then looked at Stiles with some amount of shock.  “Would you be a lamb and fetch someone to help me get him to his bed?” Grant looked up at the ceiling.  The door opened and a puff of red smoke and orange light appeared.   
  
“Lady say you need Puff puff.” Puff looked at Grant.   
  
“Can you take Stiles to his bed for me?”   
  
“Sure sure.” Puff nodded, took Stiles’ hand in his and puffed out of the room leaving the room with the scent of root beer.   
  
“Thank you.  If you’d be so kind as to have the books on the House Heirs delivered to my room, I have some research to look into.” He felt the castle’s question more then heard it.  “I think we may be dealing with a situation we haven’t faced before.”  He stood up and dusted himself off.  Going to the door he shut it and reopened it to his bedroom closing it behind him.  He walked over to his bed and ran his fingers across the blue leather of the thick volume.  He flipped it open to the page about Stiles and looked at his drawn picture of his face, flipping back to the front he found Stiles on the tree and ran the line back to the founding of the family tree, he flipped through the pages till he found the founder of their house.   
  
“Arturus De Loup...” Grant frowned.  “Can you give me any information on Arturus De Loup?” The book shuddered and there was a sketched picture of the battle warn redhead who bore a scar from a battle with a rogue wolf on his right shoulder.  But as Grant looked through the information he blinked.  “Arturus De Loup, only son of Arcanus III, First of his name...” He paused.  “Arcanus III... but..” How could someone who founded their house have the same name as the castle he was standing in.  “Do we have any information on what that line is about?” The book flipped to a back page where there was a picture of Stiles but he was wearing leather armor.  “Arcanus the III, only son and heir of Arcanus the II, the reincarnated once and future king of Arcanus, the realm of magic.” Grant looked up.  “Do you have a history of the castle?” A book fell onto his bed from thin air.  It was a purple leather book with the crest of their house, a standing wolf as it clawed at the sky.   
  
Flipping through he found the entry he was looking for.  “And thus after the war of the houses, Arturus De Loup did cast the spell that would cleave his kingdom, the birth place of all magic in the mortal world, sealing the realm of Arcanus off from the mortal world, to only again be opened by his father’s soul.” Grant looked up at the castle ceiling, before flipping through the book again, stopping at another page.  “Later it was one of the new heirs of the house that decided to honor Arcanus by crafting the Castle De Arcanus, a world between the worlds where they could reside and train and retain a portion of their lost kingdom if only in a single castle... you’re patterned off of an entire realm.. that one of Stiles’ ancestors created?” He felt the castle agree with him.  “And Stiles... is he the reincarnation, the next one in fact?”   
  
_yes._ The words appeared on a blank page in front of Grant and he blinked at it before it faded.  “Right, so he should be able to use the key to get into the other Arcanus...”  _no._   He frowned.  “But how can...” A black leather book landed on the bed.  “The Study and History of transuniversal spellcraft and the traveling across alternate histories?” He raised an eyebrow but opened the book and let the book flip open to a page with a diagram that was moving.  It indicated the castle in their universe, and tracked their universe back to a branching point where they split off from another universe, in the other universe the ancestor who crafted the castle here, had died in the attempt in the other universe.  Their universe didn’t have the castle in it, but they did have a Stiles.  A Stiles who was already in a position to open the door.   
  
“So we’re locked out because we split off from that world?”   
  
_yes._   
  
“Okay.  One less thing to worry about I suppose.  But that’s what he meant isn’t it.  The magic’s never been that strong here before because _he_ wasn’t here before now.”   
  
_yes._   
  
“He’s doing something to the castle... to you.”   
  
_yes.  he expands the boarders._   The book about the castle flipped open to the page where the boarders and boundaries were spelled out and drawn, and the edge faded as a new one farther out drew itself.   
  
“His being here is making more of the other realm appear here...” Grant frowned.  “Is he turning you into a full version of that realm for our universe?”   
  
_yes._   
  
“Fuck.” Grant sat back letting this soak into him.  “Is that why the pipes came to be in the state they were in that caused the Bamf to come into being?”   
  
_yes. i’m afraid i can’t keep everything stable while i’m growing.  there are multiple errors that are occurring all through out me.  i am unsure how bad it will get.  i have been looking for a map of Arcanus to try to gauge how large i’ll be come but i can’t find one.  i fear none exists in our reality._   
  
“Then how would we obtain a map...” The black leather book flipped to a page with a spell.  “How to project yourself across realities?” He raised an eyebrow.  “And you want me to go get the a map from the other Stiles?”   
  
_yes.  he’s younger.  his time line doesn’t run like ours does.  he is only just coming into his magic there.  but his opening of the way will give him powers beyond his understanding.  if you make an appeal to him, you may be able to petition him to conjure a map for us._   
  
“Is there no other way?”   
  
_not that i’ve found.  he’s our only shot._   
  
“If you’re sure.” He sighed as he read through the spell again, looking for what he’d need for his trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out Chapter 18 of the Mark for what Grant does next.


End file.
